


The Mandate Of Heaven

by bluelimsa



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist (Anime 2003), Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: 1920s Europe Except No Mention Of Nazis Or WW2 Because I Said So, Alternate Universe - Fullmetal Alchemist 2003/Brotherhood Fusion, Canon Compliant, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mutual Pining, Post-Fullmetal Alchemist: Conqueror of Shamballa, Protective Siblings, Sharing a Bed, Slow Burn, brief allusions to WW1 but that's all, like super slow burn, plot heavy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2018-09-17
Packaged: 2019-06-22 17:07:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 45,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15586641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluelimsa/pseuds/bluelimsa
Summary: When Ed and Alphonse cross to the other side of the Gate into a parallel world, Ed thinks it’s the last he’d ever hear of alchemy or philosopher’s stones. He’s about to be proven wrong when trouble finds him once again in the form of a mysterious foreigner on a mission and his quiet bodyguard. But maybe, it won’t be all that bad. Sometimes life finds the strangest ways to show that home can be found in the most unexpected places. Or people.





	1. On the Road Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic will have both elements of FMA03 and FMAB but it follows the events of COS so I would recommend watching it or at least reading the summary of it and the ending of FMA03. It’s not required, of course, as it can be read as a standalone AU. The biggest thing you really need to know is that at the end of it, Ed and Al end up in 1923 Germany and also Al is five years younger than Ed because of Gate of Truth fuckery!
> 
> Personally, I liked the ending of FMA03 just because it’s so Not What I Expected but COS also left a hole in my heart. This is my convoluted way of fixing that and also bringing my best boy Ling for the ride. Please enjoy!

“Open your eyes, Ed.”

Winry’s voice is familiar, warm with affection, and her smiling face is the first thing that fills his vision. Her expression matches her tone, her outline soft around the edges. Something is different, though, and Ed almost opens his mouth to ask what it is.

Her hair is out of her usual ponytail, spilling loose around her shoulders and gleaming in the sunlight as she stares up at him fondly. ( _Wait, **up**_?) Her face is familiar but different somehow, slightly longer and narrower.

And maybe most importantly, he has never seen her look at him like _that_.

There is red on her cheeks as she holds something toward him. A hefty package wrapped in brightly colored paper, secured with a golden ribbon around it.

“This is for you.”

Ed automatically accepts it. “Uh. Thanks.”

“Go on. Open it, brother!” A hand clasps his shoulder and he turns to see Alphonse, bright-eyed and flushed, hair slicked back stylishly and wearing a suit.

“Al? What’s going on?”

“Oh dear, looks like someone forgot his own birthday.” Hawkeye’s voice is warm and teasing as opposed to condescending and it’s followed by a familiar snort.

“Aren’t you a little young to be going senile already, Fullmetal?”

Before he even registers Mustang’s face, he’s yelling at the top of his lungs. “Who the hell are you calling senile, you shitty old bastard?!”

There is laughter around the room as Ed’s surroundings finally come into focus, blurry faces sharpening with familiarity. Ed’s breath catches as he recognizes the people around him. Teacher is there with Sig, grinning at him with pride in her eyes, arms crossed over her chest. Armstrong’s unmistakable form almost reaches the ceiling and he’s holding a package of his own that looks comically tiny in his large hands. Beside him: Havoc, Maria Ross, Fuery, Breda are all here too. The Fuhrer’s entourage are all dressed in their civvies, even Mustang himself.

There are some people whom he doesn’t notice at first glance and their faces keep fading in and out of clarity. Their names are on the tip of his tongue but they keep slipping away like sand through his fingers. He feels like he should remember them but doesn’t. It’s _frustrating_.

They’re all smiling at him except Winry, who admonishes him with a frown, hands on her hips. “Ed! No swearing in front of the kids! How many times do I have to tell you!”

Ed freezes, eyes impossibly wide. “Kids?”

He looks down suddenly as he feels something tugging on his pant legs. Two blond heads look up at his confused face, and giggle. “Daddy said a bad word!”

Ed stares at them in shock. They look so damn familiar. He almost feels like he’s looking at a younger image of himself and Al. But that’s impossible. _Were we this small?_ But then he notices. One pair of eyes is blue, the other gold. For a moment he’s speechless.

Winry’s displeased voice brings him back to reality. “Well. Are you going to say something?”

Ed’s head snaps up, remembering where he is. He flounders, rubbing the back of his neck. “S-sorry.”

Everyone laughs at him again and Winry’s face softens. The ring on her hand - that had escaped his notice previously - glints brighter in the sunlight, blinding him a little when she moves her hand. “Come on, you two. Let your father open his gifts now.”

She picks one of the children up, gently pulling the other away from Ed to give him space.

He looks at Al beside him, who nods encouragingly at him. “What are you waiting for, brother? We don’t have all day, you know!”

“Right…” He can’t tell if its anticipation or nervousness that suddenly makes him swallow, palms growing sweaty. He feels lightheaded. The smell of Winry’s apple pie drifts from somewhere in the house but instead of putting him at ease, it makes something painful twist inside him. The people around him are oddly silent but he hears a buzzing in his ears, growing louder with every exhale.

The room is far too bright. Sun spots dance in his vision and he has to keep blinking them away.

‘ _Brother?_ ’

“Well, here goes…” His own voice sounds far away to him, muffled as if he’s underwater. His hands move on their own.

The ribbon that was holding together his present slips to the ground. 

He gingerly opens the lid and inside is…

“Wake up, Ed!”

 

“Huh?!”

Ed jerks awake, banging his elbow against the window of the train. “Ow! Damn it!”

Across from him, Alphonse winces in sympathy. “Er, we’re almost there, brother. You told me to wake you up when they announced our stop, remember?”

Ed looks outside at the empty fields zipping past, then turns to glare at his brother. “Really? 'cause it still looks like we’re in the middle of nowhere. You could’ve let me nap a little longer, Al!”

Al only sighs dramatically. “I’d forgotten how whiny you get when you don’t get enough sleep the night before.”

“I’m not whiny!”

His brother chuckles softly, not pushing the argument further. He unfolds a large map across his lap while Ed hmphs and slumps back in his seat, crossing his arms. He watches Al scan the map with a look of concentration on his face but after a moment, turns his attention to the window.

Empty green fields and an overcast sky above, just as three hours ago when they’d first departed from Bremen.

Ed rubs his face, feeling a bad mood coming on.

He hasn’t dreamt of home in a long time. _Shit_. He almost gives in to the urge to smack himself. He’d promised himself he would stop thinking of it as _home_.

Most of the time his nights were blessedly dream-free, on account of him working himself to exhaustion to achieve that. This dream was an anomaly, and a vivid one to boot as if to specifically torture him.

It’s only been a year since Al had followed him into this strange world. This world which was a mirror image to their own and yet so alien that even now, after two whole years of being here, Ed still had trouble wrapping his brain around it. He hates that the longer he’s here, the more his own world and memories start to feel like a dream.

But he has to accept his situation, doesn’t he? He should’ve died two years ago, after all. He has yet to decide if it was fate giving him a break after all the shit he’s been through or a terrible mistake that would make him _regret_ not dying when he’d sacrificed himself to bring Al back from the other side of the Gate.

At least he had his brother with him now. His little brother who was whole and healthy and infuriatingly _taller_ than him despite being fourteen. Having him here; having him _alive_ filled a giant hole inside Ed, and made his whole situation more bearable.

That didn’t mean, of course, that he still wasn’t royally _pissed_ at Al for deciding to leave his entire life behind and follow his idiot self to this side of the Gate. (No need to mention that Ed would’ve done the same thing in his place.)

The familiar scent of apple pie reaches his nose and Ed whips his head in the direction of it. An elderly couple to his right is quietly busy with it, oblivious to the awful glare Ed is giving them. This must’ve been the reason for his stupid dream.

It smells delicious and Ed’s stomach growls. He gives it a betrayed scowl.

 _Whatever. It’s probably not as good as Winry’s anyway_ , - he thinks and then mentally kicks himself.

_Don’t think about! Don’t think about it! Don’t think about how much you miss them Don’t think about how awful and sad they must’ve felt when you abandoned them! Don’t think about Home Don’t think about Them Don’tthinkaboutitDon’tthinkaboutit_

“Brother?”

He catches Alphonse’s concerned glance. “You alright?”

Ed takes a minute to respond. He tosses his head back and smirks. “Tch. Of course. Why the hell wouldn’t I be?”

Al doesn’t say anything. Just gives him a look that says he doesn’t believe a word of that and goes back to studying his map.

Ed gives an internal sigh.

They rarely talked about it. Al seemed fascinated with this world and was eager to learn everything about it, devouring as many books and articles as he could find. Whenever he discovered or learned something new, his eyes would gleam with delight and he would most certainly drag Ed into it.

‘ _This world may not have alchemy but it has so many other exciting things, Ed! The technology here is amazing!_ ’ Ed believed his brother’s enthusiasm was genuine but even so; no matter how much he acted like he loved this place, there were times when Ed would catch him sniffling to himself when he thought he was alone.

Sometimes he had to bite his own tongue to stop himself from voicing what they were both thinking: _what if there was a way to get back home?_ But he knew those were fruitless, stupid, _selfish_ thoughts and he cursed himself every time for entertaining them. They’ve both seen the incredible peril of that line of thinking. They couldn’t endanger their world like that again.

In a way, the idea of going back was very much like human transmutation – impossible and yet oh so tempting. This is what they must’ve felt like when their mother had died. Small and alone and helpless.

But they’ve both learned from their mistake, haven’t they? And they’ve lost and suffered too much to foolishly give into the temptation again. They can’t make the same mistake. Not when it would endanger countless other lives too.

So what if he missed home unbearably sometimes? He’s managed before, right? And he didn’t even have Al with him. He has to remind himself to be grateful for what he has.

He can’t look back; he can’t have regrets.

“Say, that was the last of the research facilities, right?” Al’s voice breaks him out of his reverie and he looks over, finding his brother staring down at the map, frowning.

Ed sighs. “Sure hope so. It was the last lab location mentioned in Eckhart’s notes anyway.”

Al nods and his shoulders sag in relief. He takes out a pen out of his pocket and crosses out another landmark on the map. Hopefully that was the last they would hear of the Thule Society.

They’ve spent the majority of their time in this world tracking down any experiments and research left by Eckhart’s people and destroying them. Ed saw to it personally that anything to do with ‘Shamballa’ has been purged from existence. Fortunately, most of the remaining members seemed to have scattered on their own. As for the others – Ed had made everyone who was a witness to Eckhart’s plan swear to eternal secrecy, with a few threats thrown in just in case they ever felt like blabbing to anyone. Thankfully, they were all too eager to comply, move on, and forget about the whole affair.

Alphonse folds the map and puts it away. Then turns to Ed, hesitating.

Ed frowns. “What?”

“Are you still upset by what we found there?” Al whispers.

Ed grits his teeth and scowls. Before he can reply, Al interrupts. “It’s okay to be, you know,” he says just as softly. “I am too. Look.”

Ed does. Al’s hands are trembling slightly. They haven’t stopped since they left that research facility.

Seeing Al still shaken up over it only makes Ed _madder_.

“If you’re gonna say that I should forgive that _bastard_ after everything just because he left us some money and some stupid fucking apologies in his diary about how bad he feels -”

“Brother, he risked his life to find a way to send you back!”

“Yeah, and look how that turned out.”

“That’s not very fair…”

“Abandoning his own fucking family wasn’t _fair_ , Al! He doesn’t deserve you defending him.”

Al’s expression falls. Like it always does whenever they talk about Hohenheim.

“Still, I…” He looks down, his hands clenching on the seat, “I would’ve liked… to see him one last time, at least. Maybe to say goodbye.” His voice is small, as if he's ten again. “When we found his journal, I wasn’t mad at him. I was upset but happy? He loved us, Ed. Loved us enough to try and help us. It’s stupid, I know, but it made me happy to know that…”

Ed looks away, trying to swallow the guilt burning him from inside at making his brother upset. How could he forget. The last time Al had spoken to Hohenheim was years ago, back in their world when the old bastard returned to Resembool and they were on the run from the military. It really did seem like another lifetime. That’s how it must feel to Al too, who'd never had the chance to get to know their father. Never mind that Ed had never wanted to. Al was always different from him in that regard, after all.

After a while Ed blows out a long breath and says quietly but forcefully: “It’s not stupid.” _You’re not stupid_.

They sit in silence after that and not for the first time that day Ed thinks: _Fuck my life_.

 

_(hours earlier)_

It was supposed to be just another abandoned facility formerly belonging to the Thule Society, the last one on their long clean-up list.

Ed hadn’t been able to get a wink of sleep the night before, too wound up with anticipation to let his mind rest.

They’d taken the earliest train north, wanting to get this done as soon as possible. Ed couldn’t wait to never have to think about Eckhart or her insane cronies ever again.

As usual, they break into the building with the secret codes Ed had either found or stolen, and don’t waste any time in doing a sweep of the area. No guards, no people. Completely abandoned just like the building before.

It takes them a few hours to burn and destroy the contents of the first two floors. Ed is extremely relieved to find that this was starting to seem more and more like an information storage facility rather than a lab for developing weapons of mass destruction or conducting illegal experiments. There’s no need to use the dynamite sticks he’d brought with him just in case they happened to find something big and not so easily disposable.

He and Al decide to split up then to finish the job quicker – Al would take care of the top floor and Ed would finish the first and join him once he was done here.

It doesn’t take him long at all to finish his part. Ed is just about to thank his lucky stars that this building doesn’t have a basement to add more work to his plate when it happens. He’d leaned back against the wall of the last room, thinking he could catch his breath before heading upstairs, when his elbow hits something and the floor beneath him opens up.

His scream as he falls echoes all the way to the top floor and is probably heard outside the building too.

The next thing Ed knows – he is sitting in complete darkness on a hard ground – and he can hear Al’s footsteps getting closer.

“Brother! Brother! Where are you, Ed? Answer me!” The rising panic in his voice is what finally snaps Ed out of his stupor.

“Over here, Al! ‘m okay!”

He sees the light from Al’s flashlight first and then his brother’s worried face peeking through the hole he’d fallen through. His expression crumples in obvious relief when he spots him. “Ed! How on earth did you get down there?”

“I think…” he chuckles nervously, “I think this place has a basement after all.”

 

The truth is, of course, that nothing is ever quite that simple.

“So are you going to say it or should I?”

“D-does it need to be said?”

Al shines a light on the walls of the room. Then on the ceiling. The brothers share a look of disbelief.

There is barely any space which isn’t covered in unmistakable alchemical symbols and transmutation circles. What’s more, the handwriting is instantly recognizable.

There is no question about it.

This isn’t just a basement. This is Van Hohenheim’s _lab_.

“This is where they kept him?” Al’s voice is small, frightened.

Ed scoffs. “More like where he did their dirty work for them.”

He can feel Al’s disapproving frown but his brother says nothing.

They wonder around the room for a while after that, inspecting things silently.

Thankfully, it looks like most of the lab equipment has already been destroyed. Wires cut and pulled out, beakers smashed, bookshelves toppled over, scattering their contents onto the floor. Most of which are burned to cinder and crumple at Ed’s prodding with his foot.

Ed can’t see any obvious signs of a struggle. Still, he doesn’t rule out this being the work of the Thule Society. Either Hohenheim had been in a real hurry to cover up any evidence of him being here, or they’d attacked him in this place before dragging him off to become their prisoner or whatever. In the end, it didn’t really make any difference. They all know how that’d ended. There was no way to change the past.

If Hohenheim was responsible for trashing his own lab, it’d seem strange that he would leave the symbols on the walls, though.

Well, at least they don’t have to clean up this place too. The old bastard did save them some time, Ed would give him that.

He is just about to call it a day and suggest getting out of there when he hears Al gasp.

“Ed! Come over here!”

Al is kneeling in front of something. “Look,” he points.

Over his shoulder Ed can see an indent on the wall. It’s a slightly different color from the rest of the material. Easily missable at first glance as it looks like a portion of it was hidden by a collapsed bookshelf. What catches Ed’s – and probably Al’s attention too – is that a portion of a bigger transmutation circle is drawn on it, the symbol of an eye smack in the center of it. _Truth_. Ed feels a shudder. It seems too deliberate to be a coincidence and he knows Al is thinking the same.

The younger Elric stands up and pushes the fallen bookshelf completely out of the way.

They exchange a look of apprehension and then Al is sliding his hands against the eye symbol. The panel opens up with ease and both brothers gasp. There is definitely something behind it.

Al shines his light inside.

“Is that -?"

“A safe, yeah.”

They both peek closer. It’s locked, of course. Ed is starting to get a bad feeling about this.

“Should we?” But Al is already reaching inside, fingers wiping the dust from the lock.

“O-kay,” he breathes out. “We need a password. Three digits. Let’s try...”

Ed watches silently as Al enteres mom’s birthday. Then Ed’s. Then his own. None of them work.

With a shaky breath Al punches in the date of mom’s death. Nothing.

An idea is starting to form at the back of Ed’s head and he doesn’t like it.

“Al. Try 03 -10 -11.”

Al gives him a confused look but does as he says. “What’re those numbers supposed to mean?”

“It’s the day we burned down our house, remember? After we lost our bodies.” The memory seems like another life.

“Oh,” Al’s voice is small.

The safe lock clicks open.

Ed swears. “That fuckin’ bastard!” He wants to smash something.

Al seems to have a different reaction. “Brother!” Excited, he pulls something out of the depths of the safe. It looks like a wrinkled leather notebook. He flips through it quickly, hands shaking slightly. “Ed! I think these are father’s research notes? Oh... Some pages are missing.” A few torn leafs fly to the ground.

Ed glares at them. Despite himself, he is a little curious. Not that he would admit it.

He scoots around Al and peers into the safe, wondering if anything else is there.

Al is still talking. “He was...researching something. This is very advanced alchemy. But what is all this for - ?” He gasps.

Ed is frozen on the spot. He’d reached into the safe and his fingers had closed around an object. Slowly he pulls it out. “It-it can’t be!”

“A philosopher’s stone!”

“What the fuck!”

Ed can feel Al gaping at the object in his hand. They are both speechless for a moment.

Ed’s voice shakes, remembering all the suffering this stone had caused. The incredible price of it and how many lives were lost because of it. “This...This shouldn’t be here.”

He hears Al furiously flipping through the notes, trying to find some explanation maybe and then -

“Ed.”

He turns as Al lifts his head from the notebook. He seems to be frozen in place, overcome with an emotion different from before.

To Ed’s horror, tears start gathering at the corners of his brother’s eyes. “I was wrong,” he says quietly as they finally spill and form silent tracks down his cheeks, “These aren’t his research notes.” He wipes his eyes and meets Edward’s gaze. “I think this was his diary.”

Ed’s fingers tighten around the stone in his hand. He glances at it. He waits for Al to tell him more, not trusting his own voice at the moment.

Finally Al breathes out shakily. “Father didn’t bring the philosopher’s stone with him from our world.”

“Then?”

“It looks like he created it here.” And then he holds Ed’s gaze. “He wanted to find a way to send you back, Ed. That’s why he was working for them,” he says quietly.

Ed scowls, remembering Hohenheim telling him the same thing a year ago as he was hanging from Envy’s mouth. He’d never mentioned anything about a stone, though. The bastard.

“Great,” he says flatly. “Like anybody asked him! Did he write all that there?”

Al nods. He flips through the pages as he talks. “The Thule Society could provide him with the connections and resources for his experiments.” Then he frowns.

Ed’s voice is angry. “Does he happen to mention how many human lives it took to make this?!” He holds it up for Al to see.

His brother shakes his head apologetically. “Doesn’t seem like it. Although, I haven’t finished studying it all yet. I read fast but not _that_ fast, brother. There are at least a hundred entries.”

Ed sighs.

Al’s nose is back in the notebook. “There are a lot of formulas and alchemical diagrams at the beginning but none of them relate to the stone. Some of the pages have been torn out too.”

He makes a startled sound as he stops on a page. He starts reading. “’The stone I managed to synthesize is chemically and structurally identical to the one from our world. However, after countless experiments it failed to open the portal to the other side of the Gate.’” He looks up sadly at Ed.

Ed swallows, hating that he feels slightly disappointed. Al keeps reading. “’Perhaps the reason for this can be surmised from the fact that this world has no alchemy, and therefore the same laws do not apply. I have neither the time nor the inclination to test it for its other properties. The Thule Society is getting impatient and will soon be demanding results. I must disappear before they realize I have failed in finding a way to their fabricated ‘Shamballa’. It is with a heavy heart that I must abandon this research.’” Al flips to what looks to be the last entry. “’It is time to flee this place and cut my ties with Eckhart and her people. I will try to pass the money to Edward and then decide my next course of action.’”

Ed flinches at the mention of his name.

“’I doubt my son will welcome my assistance.’” - Ed whispers ‘You got that right’ under his breath – “’But if I cannot deliver him the way to send him home to his brother, this small fortune I have gathered will have to do. The Thule Society pays well but he will need the money more than I. It is the least I can do.’”

“Like hell I need his stinkin’ money!” Ed jumps to his feet, clenching his fists in anger. _Who did he think he was?!_

Al flips the pages. All blank after that entry. A brown envelope suddenly falls out from between the empty pages. Al picks it up.

“Ed. This has your name on it. In dad’s handwriting. It must be the money he mentioned.” He looks up at Ed as if asking for permission but the elder Elric is still busy seething. He turns away.

“Don’t need it.”

“But-”

“I said I don’t need it, Al!”

He hears Al get to his feet. “ _We_ need the money, Ed! You might hate father still but that doesn’t change the fact that he was trying to look out for you.”

Ed scoffs, shoving his hands deep in the pockets of his coat.

“Besides, we are almost out of money ourselves.” He feels Al grip his shoulder and finally turns to face him. His expression is pleading. “Travelling is expensive, brother. What will we do once we run out? We have no jobs, no education that this world wants. The money that you saved up from building rockets won’t last us forever. Please take it, Ed. If not for him, then for _me_.”

Ed knows that look and that tone of voice and he knows he is not winning this argument. Alphonse had the worst case of puppy eyes that, even being as stubborn as Ed was, he just couldn't deny. He groans at the ceiling. “Fine.”

Al smiles.

“But we’ll only use it if we run out.”

“ _When_ we run out.” Al corrects.

“Whatever.”

Ed looks at Hohenheim’s notebook in Al’s free hand. “Burn that.”

Al’s smile falls. “W-what? Why?”

Ed turns away. “We don’t need it, Al. There’s no benefit in bringing it with us; plus it’ll only weigh us down. We travel light, remember?” It sounds like a weak excuse even to his own ears but Ed hopes his brother can guess that he doesn’t want to see that freaking thing. He doesn’t need _his_ apologies when it’s too late to change anything. 

In the end Hohenheim might have succeeded in opening the Gate for Ed, albeit at the cost of his own life, but it didn’t mean Ed had to forgive him. All the years of absence; it still wasn’t enough to make up for them. Not to mention, it’s because of him that the Thule were able to invade their home and cause all that destruction in the first place. No, he didn’t owe the old bastard a damn thing.

He glances at Al, who is still pouting and clutching the journal to his chest. “Once you’re done here, meet me outside by the river. Don’t take too long.”

Al frowns, his mouth set in an unhappy line. Thankfully, he doesn’t argue. “What will you do with that?” He asks, pointing at the philosopher’s stone.

Ed holds it up to his face and grins at it maliciously. “Oh don’t you worry about this little thing, Al. I’ll take care of it.”

He hears Al mutter “I don’t like the sound of that” as he turns and climbs out, leaving Hohenheim’s lab without a backward glance.

 

A while later Al finds him on the banks of the Weser, the wind whipping through his ponytail.

Above, the sky is turning murky grey with clouds rolling in from the east. The air is starting to smell like rain.

Ed hears the crunching of boots behind him and turns around.

The younger Elric quickly shoves his hands into the pockets of his coat, but not before Ed notices them trembling still. Alphonse tries to shoot him a watery smile as he joins him.

“All set?”

“Mhmm,” Al nods. Then looks at him. “What did you do with the stone?”

Ed smiles pleasantly. “Oh, I threw it into the river.”

“Y-you. What?!” But Ed is already walking away. Fast. Al gapes after him.

Ed turns at the last minute and shouts. “Come on, our train will be here soon! Move it, slowpoke!”

Al’s resigned groan is lost to the wind as he jogs up after his brother.

 

“I can’t believe it still hasn’t rained. All that build-up and for what?”

“Mhm.”

“You think we’ll be there soon?”

“...”

Ed huffs irritably when Al doesn’t make an effort to respond or even look up from another book his nose is buried in. The awkward silence for the past fifteen minutes had been killing Ed and he’d decided to do the mature thing and speak up. His efforts weren’t appreciated, it seems. _Fine then_.

He sighs and laces his fingers behind his head, contemplating if he can sneak in another quick nap before they arrive at their destination. He’s getting impatient, he knows, but he can’t stand this silence anymore. It’s not the usual comfortable silence he’s used to with Al; it’s the tense, post-argument guilt-ridden one and it always makes him feel like shit.

He closes his eyes and tries to focus on the noise around him and empty his mind. The sounds of the train remind him of childhood days spent travelling on State Alchemist business when Al was still a hollow suit of armour. It is the same as in the other world, and thus oddly comforting. It’s strange - he never thought he’d miss those days. (The thought makes him feel both nostalgic and guilty so he abandons it.)

“Do you miss them?”

He cracks an eye open. “Huh?”

Al looks sheepish, as if he only just realized Ed was trying to sleep. “Mr. Hughes, Miss Gracia, and Noah? They were your friends before I arrived, right?” He seems to be in better spirits. But that’s Alphonse for you. He was never the type to hold grudges for long. Or maybe Ed is just the exception.

“You mean ‘Officer’ Hughes?” Ed can’t help the cold animosity in his voice. “‘Friend’? Don’t make me laugh, Al.”

Ed frowns as he thinks about him. This world’s Hughes might as well be a stranger wearing Hughes’s face as he was nothing like the kind and generous man he remembers from their world. The annoyingly nosy Colonel-Major who always had a smile for them, who was a good father and husband, and who got himself killed trying to help two dumb kids. Ed knew it was childish but he’d wanted to get Alphonse away from him as soon as possible. He couldn’t bear to see the same disappointment on his brother’s face when he’d realize this Hughes was nothing like the one they both remembered.

They didn’t even say goodbye to him when they were leaving. And in Ed’s honest opinion? Good riddance.

Alphonse tilts his head and gives him a questioning stare. 

Ed blows at his bangs haughtily. “I don’t give a crap about that guy. I hope Miss Gracia dumps him.”

“Brother!”

“What? That’s how I feel!”

Al sighs that put-upon sigh and looks out the window. “Well. I hope that Miss Noah is alright, at least.”

That, Ed could agree with. “Yeah.”

They’d parted ways with her not long after Alfons' funeral. Her friends had dropped them off and she had leaned over and given him a kiss on the cheek. The wistful look in her eyes as she’d waved them goodbye told Ed she didn’t expect to see them ever again. Ed hopes she’s doing well in any case, and had found the home she was searching for. He doesn't hold any resentment toward her for helping Eckhart. After all, he of all people knows what it's like to long for a home you can never have.

Thinking about Noah almost always brought up memories of Heiderich and the guilt of his death still weighed heavily over him. Damn idiot just had to play hero and sacrifice himself for Ed to see his world again. He’d been the closest reminder of Alphonse he had in this world and he just had to die. How could Ed forgive him for doing something so stupid? Ed bites the inside of his cheek. _Bastard_.

Al must sense Ed’s darkening mood because the younger Elric doesn’t prod. He seems to have finished the book he was reading earlier because he gives Ed one last look of concern and reaches for the newspaper folded on the seat next to him. Besides turning into a bibliophile, Ed’s brother had also picked up the habit of reading the news every day to stay in touch with what’s happening in the world. Ed himself wasn’t as interested so he trusted Al to feed him bits and pieces of the events he thought were relevant or interesting.

At the moment, though, Ed doesn’t feel much like talking and so he turns his attention to the scenery outside again. 

Before he can go back to brooding, though, Al’s sharp intake of breath stops him.

Ed tenses and turns toward him. “What?”

Al’s eyes are wide, trained on the front page of the newspaper. It doesn’t seem to be in alarm, just surprise, and Ed relaxes slightly.

“Ed,” Al whispers,“you’ll never believe this.”

“What is it?” Now Ed is getting curious. He scoots across and sits beside his brother.

“Look!” There’s a grainy black and white picture of a man and Al points at it, then turns and smiles at Ed. “Doesn’t he look familiar to you?”

Ed’s jaw goes slack as recognition floods his features. “No way. Is that -?”

“The Colonel!” Al confirms happily.

The resemblance is uncanny. The man in the photograph has the same messy raven hair that falls into his eyes, the stiff shoulders, the same pissed off expression when something doesn’t go his way. This one even has the eyepatch over his left eye too.

Ed reads the headline. “‘No Lives Were Lost During Hospital Fire Thanks To Former Militia Officer. Roy Meissner’” - he exchanges a look with Al - “‘a war veteran originally from Saxony who recently sparked a controversy that led to his dismissal from the military forces, was named hero today when he saved the lives of patients and doctors alike. The fire, suspected to have started because of a gas leak, caused property damage and first to second degree burns but nothing life-threatening thanks to the efforts of Herr Meissner’s quick thinking.’” 

Ed raises an eyebrow. “‘Roy Meissner’, huh? And I was wondering why I haven’t run into him in this world yet. What’s this about a ‘controversy’?” 

Al says, impatient: “Just keep reading, brother! It says that he was discharged from the military based on the rumors that he saved a French soldier’s life during the war. Apparently, the date for his trial is still pending. The public opinion seems to be, though, that these are just lies started by his enemies and there is an ongoing investigation to see if they’re true.”

“So. Colonel bastard is causing trouble in this world too, huh?”

His light tone disappears then, suddenly remembering this world’s Hughes. Just because their doubles shared the same face, didn’t mean they were the same person. This one could still prove to be worse.

“Do you think he’ll, y’know, need our help?” Al’s tone is uncertain as he looks at his brother questioningly.

Ed shakes his head resolutely. “No way. It’s none of our business, Al.” 

“I know…It’s just.” Alphonse looks down, fiddles with his fingers. “It would be nice to see a familiar face again.”

Edward understands completely but doesn’t say anything.

Neither of them brings up the idea of meeting this man again. 

As much as they are both intent on embracing this world as their new home and helping its people, there is an unspoken agreement between the two to never to get involved in military business again.

After all, as Frank Archer had put it himself, no military was ever truly free from evil or corruption. Edward had no reason to think that this world was any different in that regard. And after everything that’s happened, he was done being the dog of the military.

Ed and Al both look up when they hear the announcement that they were arriving at last.

“Freakin’ finally,” Ed mutters, rising to his feet and stretching. The automail of his arm gives a worrying creak and goes stiff. “ _Dammit_. Not again.” He gives it a few jabs, slams it a few times with his flesh hand, and it goes back to moving smoothly again. 

Ed sighs. This is what he gets for not going for a tune-up for a whole year. Where was Winry when you needed her?

The train slowly comes to a stop and around them, the passengers begin gathering their belongings and shuffling towards the exit.

Al buttons up his coat, leaving the newspaper behind and only taking his folio bag with him. 

Since they were travelling constantly, the brothers have been practically living out of their suitcases. Which suited Ed just fine. It wasn’t much different from their childhood days, after all.

“So, where to next?” Al asks cheerfully as they step outside.

Ed grins. “Now we find someone to take us across the border.”

 

They end up hiring a driver willing to take them and in the process, officially exhausting Ed’s savings. He hates the idea of having to rely on Hohenheim’s money but as the saying goes, beggars can’t be choosers. Literally, in their case. 

They’ve never been this far west, nor have they been out of the country before, and really Ed should’ve planned better. He couldn’t have expected their money to last forever. Considering the price of the train tickets had cost them a small fortune, he should’ve guessed the rest of their travelling expenses wouldn’t be so cheap either.

Al spends much of their ride berating him for that oversight. Ed decides not to tell him he’d briefly but seriously considered stealing a car and the only thing that had stopped him was the unfamiliarity of the terrain and the laws and everything.

The other passengers just give him sympathetic looks or snicker to themselves. 

Once Al gets tired of lecturing, he starts making small talk with the people around them and Ed breathes a sigh of relief. Not really in the mood for socialization, he goes to study the map and plan their future actions. 

It does finally rain once they cross the border into Netherlands. Ed finds himself grateful for the canvas roof of the truck they were huddling in. It was thin and cheaply made but it provided cover, which was more than welcome.

The drive across the whole country takes them a few hours, excluding a few rest stops. All the other passengers disembark before them and once it’s just him and Al, Ed decides to pay the driver a little extra to take them straight to the ferry terminal.

Neither of them have ever ridden a ferry. Sure, Ed had seen illustrations and read books about sailing but this is the closest he’s ever gotten. Teacher’s little boat when she took them to that island to test them wasn’t really the same. This ferry was much bigger, was steam-powered, and could obviously fit more passengers.

Ed’s mood sours slightly when he sees the price for a ticket and Al innocently suggests that he could save some money by buying a child’s fare. In response, Ed gives him such a dark glare that his brother instantly gives a forced laugh and assures him it was just a joke.

“Joke, _my ass_.” Ed grumbles to himself the entire time as they board the ferry to England. 

His bad mood is completely forgotten, though, once the ferry sails. Ed doesn’t need to look at his brother to know that his own excitement is reflected in Alphonse’s face. 

The ride is entirely too short and Ed silently promises himself to take Al on a boat ride again, if that’s what it would take to see that childlike wonder he’d missed seeing in his brother's eyes.

Once they’re on solid land again, the worries come crashing in. As they go through the customs, Ed hopes he’d planned well in advance. Mostly, Ed worries that his and Al’s fake passports and birth certificates will get exposed and they’ll be kicked out and forced to go back. Or worst case scenario - get arrested. 

Earlier that year, Ed had confronted and bribed (threatened) a former Thule Society member to forge identification documents for him and Al since they didn’t have any. He’d done an impressive job and in exchange Ed hadn’t thrashed him around too much and had dutifully kept his secret from his family. 

They haven’t been caught yet but that didn’t stop Ed from tensing up whenever they had to show them to any type of authority.

He finally breathes a long sigh of relief, though, when they go through the process without a problem.

Ed can tell Alphonse is dying to sightsee but they are in a rush, after all. He makes another internal promise to come back and take Al exploring once they’re finished with their business in the city.

They inhale a quick dinner on their way out and then catch a ride to their final destination.

The weather is gloomy when they arrive in the big bustling city but Ed’s spirits are high for the first time in a while. He stretches his legs and rubs his prosthetic arm, works out a few kinks while Al is busy looking around. “Man, I can’t believe we’re finally here!”

Alphonse laughs, slinging his bag over his shoulder and pulling his scarf tighter around him. “I can’t wait to see what London has to offer, brother! I’ve read so much about it!” Ed can practically see the stars in his brother’s eyes.

“Oi, oi, hold your horses, Al. We’ve only just arrived.” He can’t help but chuckle at Al’s enthusiasm though.

His brother nods, schooling his excitement.

“Right. Exploring can wait. Let’s go find that prosthetist first.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a lot of exposition in this chapter but I promise it’s only necessary for this one to set the scene. The good news is that Ling will appear in the next chapter! :D Also this fic is mostly written out already so updates will be weekly.
> 
> This is my first hand at writing a multi-chapter fic so I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!  
> ps: English is not my first language and I don’t have a beta so all mistakes will be my own (hopefully not too many though orz)  
> pps: I feel very passionate about short!Ed so that'll be a recurring theme throughout this fic. Sorry.


	2. The Five-Clawed Dragon

“HOW MUCH?!”

Ed was confident he’d heard the prosthetics seller wrong but the unimpressed look he’d given them said otherwise. Ed didn’t even have time to start an argument or bargain when the man had had enough of them and promptly kicked them out, claiming they were holding up the business. There was nobody else there at that hour.

“Did he think we were millionaires or something?” Ed’s shrill voice fills the air and he ignores the stares from other bar patrons. They’d crashed into the nearest pub to drown their sorrows and figure out what to do next. But mostly to drown their sorrows.

“We’ve spent all our money just to come all this way and now not even dad’s money will be enough to cover this,” Al sighs beside him, sounding just as forlorn. It looks like even Al’s optimism had its limits.

“If the bastard charges _that_ much for a single appointment, he’s gotta be a fraud!”

“Or a professional?” Al says unhelpfully.

“Not helping, Al!”

“Are you sure you got his address right, brother?”

“Uh, _yeah_? ‘73 Baker Street’ just like that newspaper clipping said! Look, I even have it with me here -,” He shoves it in Al’s face, who puts his hands up in a placating gesture. His shoulders slump then, “What do we do now?”

“I know what _I’m_ doing now,” Ed says determinedly and bangs on the countertop with his fist, eliciting the barkeep’s attention. He’s a stern-looking man with a big, unkempt beard. He reminds Ed of Sig, a little. He raises a bushy eyebrow at the two of them.

“Bartender, give my brother here an apple cider and the strongest thing you have for me. Whiskey’ll do .”

“Brother…?”

“What.” 

“What are you doing?”

“What’s it look like I’m doing? It’s late, I’m tired, and I’m going to drown my sorrows here tonight and there’s nothing you can do about it, Al.”

Alphonse sighs as the barman slides a bottle of cider in front of him. “Is this what being an adult is like?”

Ed snorts. He decides not to tell him he doesn’t have much experience in drinking himself. Sure, he’s had some alcohol here and there but never enough to make him considerably drunk. Ed isn’t stupid enough to lower his inhibitions here either; in this strange unfamiliar city they’ve just arrived in. He just thinks it might take the edge off and honestly? He’s developing a headache and he wants to stop thinking at least for a little.

The pub owner suddenly leans close on the counter and looks Ed directly in the eye. “Sorry, my boy, but in this establishment we don’t serve alcohol to children. Come back and ask me that in a few years, though. Now, let me get you something else?”

Ed goes stock-still. “Ch...children?” He senses Alphonse tense and lean away slightly, preparing for the inevitable explosion.

Sure enough -

A metal fist slams down on the countertop. Hard. “WHO THE HELL ARE YOU CALLING A CHILD, YOU GREASY OLD DIRTBAG?!” He screeches.

The man seems completely unfazed. Just raises an eyebrow again, dark eyes twinkling. “Oh? How old are you then, boy?”

“I’m nineteen, you asshole!” He yells, ignoring Al’s quiet hiss of ‘Brother!’.

Again, the man doesn’t seem to realize the danger he’s in. “Oh? You have proof of that, mister?” His voice is light, condescending.

“Yes! As a matter of fact, I do right here!” He reaches into his pocket to pull out his passport and show it to the man.

The bartender squints at it and then waves a hand. “That definitely looks forged.” Ed’s mouth drops open. “Sorry, laddie, you aren’t the first one to try and pull one over me.”

“Unbelievable!”

“Ed!” At this point Al grabs a hold of Ed’s arm and squeezes. “Please don’t make a scene. It’s not that big of a deal - just order something else!” He pleads.

Ed decides that the only reason the man gets off alive is because of Al. Shame he’ll never know it. 

He shakes off Al’s hand and glares at the pub owner. “Fine, I changed my mind. I don’t want anything from _you_.”

The man laughs. “Oh, come now, don’t be like that, my boy!” He turns to pour something into a glass and then places in front of Ed. “I can tell that you two have had a rough day. Here. This one’s on the house.”

Ed frowns suspiciously at the glass. “What’s this?”

He smiles jovially at him. “Milk. So you can grow big and strong!”

The next thing Ed knows he’s being held back by Al. “Brother, please!” He spouts apologies at the man and at the other patrons as he drags Ed backwards. Ed lets himself be manhandled into a booth by Al, all the while shouting curses and expletives at the pub owner. Who just waves at them and goes back to serving drinks, completely unaffected. _The fucking nerve_ -

“Brother!”

Ed’s growling stops when he sees the look his brother is giving him. With a huff he crosses his arms and slumps, still seething.

Alphonse sighs and pats him on the shoulder. “How about I order something for us?”

Ed doesn’t argue, too busy giving everyone around him death stares.

He does, eventually, calm down considerably thanks to Al’s efforts and the food - which happens to be not bad at all. Al orders a meat pie for himself and steak-frites for Ed. He doesn’t order a dessert or anything fancy. It’ll probably be their last good meal in a while. Ed is torn between appreciation and annoyance that he can’t find more reason to stay mad - like shitty food. Damn his brother for knowing him so well.

The pub grub warms his belly and makes him a little drowsy. He even sips his apple cider without complaint.

Once Alphonse is done, he carefully wipes his mouth with a napkin and sighs. “Ok, now we need to figure out what to do. Any ideas, brother?”

Ed blinks his eyes sleepily and then sits up straighter. He clears his throat and thinks, frowning at the table. “Well, short-term we need to find a place to stay for the night. And long-term, figure out where to get the money to live here and fund my tune-up. Hohenheim’s money will last us a month, tops. So I’m more concerned about the surviving part. We could always find a different prosthetist to look at my arm.”

Al casts his eyes down. “I hear London’s expensive, brother. It won’t be easy.”

Ed groans into his hands. “Ugh, we shouldn’t have blown our money on those train tickets; we should’ve just taken a car. Or stolen one, who cares! Stupid, stupid!” He berates himself.

Al’s voice tries to be hopeful. “Maybe we can get a job? Surely in a big city like this they’ll have something for us?”

Ed isn’t as optimistic. “Al, we don’t have any skills or qualifications. We don’t even have the right education. Fat load of good my knowledge on rockets will do here. Plus, we’re foreigners. You said it yourself: it won’t be easy.”

But then he looks at his little brother’s slumped shoulders and switches tracks. “But hey, we’ve done more impossible things that this, haven’t we? I’m sure we’ll figure something out. We just need to stay focused and not give up!”

Al only sighs, not entirely convinced. “I’m starting to think maybe it was stupid of us to toss the philosopher's stone away, brother. We could’ve sold it or something…”

“So sorry to interrupt but did you just say the ‘philosopher’s stone’?”

They both jump at the new voice and turn their heads. 

There is a tall man sitting in their booth, sprawled casually in the seat across from them. 

Another foreigner, judging by the strange way he’s dressed and the slight accent in his voice. His long inky hair is tied back in a ponytail and he’s wearing a loose open shirt that seems to be made of silk and reveals a lean, muscular torso underneath. 

Ed thinks the man’s eyes are closed but it’s hard to tell. Spiky black bangs hang over one side of his face, obscuring his right eye.

He seems completely at ease, smiling at them amicably as he leans his chin on his hand. Ed tenses.

“Please do tell me more about it.” He opens his eyes then and Ed feels his breath catch. They’re dark like his hair, but carry an intensity that tells a completely different story from his relaxed posture. 

“It just so happens that I’ve been searching everywhere for the object by that name.” His voice is light, friendly.

The stranger moves his gaze to Al and Ed finally snaps out of his stupor. He jumps to his feet, growling. “Like hell! Just who do you think you are?!” His loud voice startles a few bar patrons beside them but otherwise, no one pays them any mind. 

A lot of things happen at once then. 

The man wags a finger in Ed’s face and says, chiding: “Ah, ah, ah. I wouldn’t do anything hasty if I were you.”

At the same time Ed hears Al’s yelp of alarm. “Brother!” He turns to his left and his eyes widen. 

“Al!” There is another presence behind them. The person is dressed in all black, wearing a strange mask and holding a small knife to Al’s throat. A _kunai_ , Ed’s brain supplies helpfully.

His brother’s face is pale with fear and Ed feels the same terror grip his heart. _This can’t be happening_.

The man just continues speaking calmly. “Don’t do anything rash. I don’t want to hurt your companion here.”

“Wh-what? What is this? Why are you doing this to us?!” Ed hates the way his voice shakes. 

The stranger just sighs. “Come now, please settle down. I just want to talk. I think I’ve made it pretty obvious what I want from you.” 

He steeples his fingers under his chin and leans close until his nose is inches away from Ed’s. His eyes seem to stare right into Ed’s soul.

“Tell me everything you know about the philosopher’s stone and where to find it. And don’t even think about lying. I can sense you _qi_ and I’ll be able to tell if you are.” 

Despite the cheery tone, Ed can tell the man means business.

He sits down slowly, glancing worriedly at Al out of the corner of his eye. Al, who is still paralyzed in the grip of the kunai-wielder and staring resolutely ahead, sweating profusely. 

Ed swallows, his heart beating erratically against his ribcage. He tries to think, come up with a plan or a way for them to escape. But it’s hard to concentrate when there is a weapon at his brother’s throat and an unpredictable enemy across from them who is watching him closely.

“The philosopher’s stone, huh?” He starts shakily. “You must’ve misheard us, mister. Earlier, we - we didn’t mean _the_ philosopher’s stone like from the legends, y’know? We were talking about something else; a-a family heirloom, okay? The tales about the actual stone are nothing but fairy tales, right? So I’m not sure what you want me to say -”

The stranger sighs, displeased. “Wrong answer.” 

“Brother!” 

Ed gasps as he sees the sharp blade move closer to his brother’s throat. If Al so much as swallowed, the knife would nick the skin of his throat. “No, wait!”

“Please take this seriously.” Ed turns back to the man, wide-eyed. “I heard your companion talking here. Your brother, right?” His smile disappears then and he frowns. “He was speaking about it as if it was something real, not made-up. He mentioned something about you ‘tossing it away’.”

Al speaks up first before Ed can. “We can’t tell you, it’s too dangerous!”

Ed looks at him in alarm. “Al, shut up!”

“You can kill me! You can do whatever you want to me but we won’t tell you anything about it!”

“I said shut up, you idiot!”

“No, brother! You were the one who told me it should never fall into the wrong hands again!”

“Now is _not_ the time to play hero, you absolute moron!”

“Don’t tell me what to do when you’re always doing stupid things and putting your own life in danger!”

“Are we seriously doing this right now?!”

There is a loud groan behind them.

They both stiffen and Ed turns slowly. The dark-haired man is banging his forehead against the table. “This isn’t going anywhere. Lan Fan, let the boy go.”

The blade disappears at once, as does the man’s black-clad companion. Ed is too preoccupied with his brother’s new freedom to keep track of where the masked individual goes. 

Al sways forward with a gasp and Ed steadies him.

“How about we try something else. Let’s make a deal.”

Ed looks at the man as if he’s crazy. 

“You come work for me! You take me to the stone and I will reward you both handsomely for your cooperation.” He tilts his head to the side and blinks innocently. “I overheard you were having financial problems, yes?”

“Um-” Al tries.

“And you need money for - this, right?”

His hand suddenly shoots forward and grabs hold of Ed’s right arm. Ed cries out in surprise. He’s too stunned to form coherent words at first. _What the shit?! Did he really just_ \- 

The man rolls his fingers along the sleeve, as if feeling for the material underneath. “Hm, what do you know - it really is made out of metal. Amazing!”

Ed finally snaps out of it and roughly shakes off his grip. “Keep your damn hands to yourself unless you wanna lose ‘em!” He growls dangerously.

Al makes a worried noise and Ed has a momentary fear that the man will call back his guard but he doesn’t seem offended in the slightest. 

“Sorry, sorry!” He laughs, putting his hands up. 

“But back to the matter at hand. What do you say to my offer? I promise to make it worth your while.”

“No freakin’ way!” Ed doesn’t even want to consider helping this weasely, shifty weirdo who had the gall to threaten him and put a knife to his little brother’s throat -

“Brother, wait!”

Ed feels Al tugging on his sleeve. He looks at him questioningly. “What?” 

But Al is looking at the man, speaking directly to him. “When you say you’ll make it ‘worth our while’ - what do you mean exactly?”

Ed hisses, scandalized. “Al!”

Al whispers back: “We _need_ the money, brother! You said it yourself: we won’t last long in this city without it! And your automail needs repairs - don’t think I haven’t noticed!”

“ _You_ were the one who said we shouldn’t let the stone fall into this guy’s hands! Where’s your bravery now, Mr. Hero?”

“I’m _trying_ to help us, brother. Do you have a better idea?”

“Yeah - we find jobs!”

“That could take us months!”

“We don’t even know what this guy’ll do with it, Al!”

“Ahem.”

The both turn.

“If you are both quite finished.” The man’s bored expression slides off when he has their full attention once more. “Young man,” he says to Al. “If you help me, you and your brother will be rich beyond the dreams of avarice. On my word as emperor.”

There is a moment of silence between the brothers and then -

“The WHAT now?”

“D-did I hear that right?”

The man appears amused by their bewilderment. He gives them another close-eyed smile and inclines his head. “That’s right. I am Ling Yao of the Qing dynasty, the twelfth Emperor of China.” 

This night was turning out to be stranger and stranger.

Ed and Al exchange looks of disbelief and then Ed bursts into laughter. “Yeah, right! Do you think we were born yesterday? Why the hell would an _emperor_ of China be here of all places!”

Al looks uncertainly at his brother, then at the man. “I mean no disrespect but do you have any proof?”

Silently, and a little smugly, the man pulls something out of his sleeve. He holds it up for them to see. 

It is a yellow cloth, made of an expensive-looking fabric. Satin or silk, if Ed were to hazard a guess. There is an azure five-clawed dragon, its yawning mouth reaching to swallow a red sun in the corner.

“The hell…” Ed mutters, squinting at it.

Al gasps. “The royal banner of the Qing dynasty!” 

The man seems delighted. “Ah, I see you recognize it!”

Al turns slightly and whispers urgently to Ed without taking his eyes off the material. “I’ve read about this, Ed! It’s the real thing! See how that dragon has five claws? Only emperors can use that as their symbol.”

Ed grunts. “You’ve gotta be kidding me. He could’ve just stolen it or something, Al. This guy doesn’t exactly strike me as _princely_.”

“ _Emperor_. Not a prince. And I can hear you, you know!” The man claiming to be emperor tucks away the cloth and pouts at him. _Pouts_.

“Um, please forgive my brother. We believe you, Your Majesty.” Al bows slightly, shoving an elbow into Ed’s side before the elder Elric can protest.

The man just smiles brightly. “Oh, no, please! Just call me ‘Ling’. There is no need for titles or formality. I am here on unofficial business, exploring a foreign country and seeing what it’s like to live as a commoner. Please, let us speak as friends!”

Ed huffs, irritated. Something about the man just rubs him the wrong way. “Do you pull out a weapon on all your ‘friends’? Seriously, couldn’t you be this nice beforehand? It’s a little too late now.”

The man, _Ling_ , levels him with another kicked-puppy look. Or as much as one can do with one’s eyes almost entirely shut. “I tried! But you -” he flicks Ed’s forehead, who jerks back in surprise - “tried to cause a scene and forced my hand.” He sits back, folding his (surprisingly?) toned arms across his chest. “The people of this country are quite rude to foreigners. Whenever we try to ask you something nicely, we are either ignored or not taken seriously on account of us being strangers to this land.”

Al laughs awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. “I can believe that. We’ve only just arrived in London ourselves actually. So we’ve received some of that treatment too.” He mentions, no doubt remembering their disastrous experience with the rude prosthetics shop owner.

“Boo-hoo,” Ed drawls, sitting down and planting his fist on the table. “Back to this offer of yours. We won’t tell you anything until you first explain why exactly you are hunting for the philosopher’s stone. What are you planning to do with it, anyway?” He narrows his eyes at the man, golden eyes glinting dangerously.

The emperor smiles at him, unaffected. “Why, it is said to turn metal into gold! I want to test that rumor for myself and see the miracle with my own eyes!”

Ed scrutinizes the man, trying to see if he’s lying or not. It’s hard to tell. The bastard seems to be good at putting up a facade. Ed wishes he could see his eyes now; read the true emotion hidden in their dark depths. He, of course, keeps them stubbornly closed as if to irritate him on purpose.

“So - what? You just want more wealth?” He leans closer, sneering. “If you’re royalty, shouldn’t you already be filthy rich? Or are you that much of a greedy pig?”

In a split-second, something hard slams him in the back of the head. He cries out in pain, Al’s eyes widening in his peripheral vision. “Brother!”

There is a sharp, angry voice in his ear. “Is that any way to speak to the Emperor? My Lord, let me teach this swine a lesson.”

Ed tenses. “H-hey, hang on a second now.”

He feels Ling’s eyes on him and meets his stare evenly. His gaze is considering and Ed thinks he sees something like amusement in them. 

Without taking his eyes off of Ed, he speaks: “Relax, Lan Fan. There was no harm done. This isn’t our country; they owe us no allegiance. We are speaking as equals here.”

He can feel disapproval radiating in waves from the person behind him but they step back, as ordered. Ed and Al both breathe a sigh of relief.

Ling is still watching him. He raises an eyebrow, smiling slightly. “Insulting the ruler of a country at your first meeting? You would make a terrible diplomat. But it is quite bold of you, I’ll give you that. You are very interesting, Mr - ?”

Ed decides not to try his luck anymore tonight. “Elric. Edward Elric,” he grumbles. Then points at Al. “And this is my brother, Alphonse.”

Al cracks a strained smile.

Ling nods approvingly and beckons with his hand. At once, the masked figure from before reappears at his side. Both brothers tense up immediately. 

Ling goes on, oblivious. “I’ve already introduced myself. But this is my royal bodyguard, Lan Fan. You’ve already met her.” He nods and the mask comes off. The young woman underneath has dark hair and dark eyes, just like Ling. She bows slightly toward the two of them but Ed isn’t fooled. Her expression is schooled into blankness but he can sense a dangerous iciness lurking beneath. He thinks that if Ling hadn’t stopped her, he’d be dead on the ground right now for offending her boss.

Al’s reaction is more genuine. He seems to get over his fear because the next thing Ed knows, he rises to his feet and bows in return. “Nǐ hǎo”, he chirps at her. 

Lan Fan raises an eyebrow and says nothing, disappearing back into the shadows in a flash.

Ed rolls his eyes. Classic Alphonse. He is surprised, though. He knew his brother could speak multiple languages by now but he never mentioned he knew Chinese. 

Ling is watching with an extremely amused expression, hiding a smile with the sleeve of his shirt. Ed glares at him. He is ignored.

“You speak our language?”

Al just laughs, embarrassed, and takes a seat. “No, I’m afraid you just saw the extent of my knowledge of it.”

Ling hums and then looks at Ed, then back to Al. “So. I have answered your questions. Are you ready to come work for me now?”

“Just a minute there -” Ed slings an arm around Al’s shoulders and pulls him close, giving the emperor a nasty smile. “Let me discuss it with my brother here before we agree to anything.”

Ling gives them an impatient expression but concedes. “Very well.”

Ed knows the bastard can still hear them, being in their ear-shot and all, so he switches to German. 

“Al, what’ll it be.” Ed can see out of the corner of his eye, Ling tilt his head in confusion, and it confirms his suspicions that the jerk has no idea what they’re saying. Good.

Al raises an eyebrow. “Oh, so _now_ you want my opinion?” 

Ed sighs, “Can you not snark at me right now? We’re still in a life and death situation here.”

Al folds his arms. “Well. You already know my stance on this. I think we should take the offer, brother.”

“Does he not seem like the most untrustworthy bastard to you? What if he’s lying about everything?”

“Or he could be telling the truth? Sure, he doesn’t exactly dress or act like royalty but he seems to have enough money to hire a bodyguard, at least. Besides, we don’t have a lot of other options here.”

“What about the stone? We’re just gonna hand it over to an idiot like him? What if he ends up destroying a city or something?”

Al frowns, thinking. “Ed, do you remember what father wrote in his journal? The stone might look like the one from our world but without alchemy powering it, it doesn’t have the same abilities or properties. I don’t think father tested it to see if it can turn things to gold but at least it shouldn’t have the destructive power to level a city or anything like that.”

Ed grits his teeth. “What if...what if it can’t turn things to gold and just ends up being a regular piece of junk rock? He might _kill_ us, Al.”

“You don’t _know_ that, brother.”

“Well, let’s find out.” He turns his gaze toward the man in question. “Hey. You -”

Ling, who freezes in the process of reaching a hand toward one of Ed’s leftover frites. He snatches his hand back, smiling innocently at them. Ed glares daggers at him. 

“Yes? Have you decided?”

“Just one question, Your Majesty,” Ed grounds out. “What will happen if we take you to the stone but it doesn’t turn out to have the power to turn metal into gold, like you’re hoping?” 

Ling sighs sadly. “Well then, I think that’s fairly obvious. I will be forced to execute you two for wasting my time.”

Both brothers stiffen. There is a moment of breathless silence and then they’re both out of their seats, shouting at once. “YOU WHAT?!” “Y-YOU CAN’T DO THAT!!!”

The bastard starts _laughing_. “Just kidding!”

Ed and Al gawk at him.

He sighs and motions at them to sit down again. “Please, I am only asking you to take me to it. I will handle the rest. Besides, I am not some cruel monster who’d stoop to killing children.”

The Elrics’ countenance shifts immediately. Al whispers, “Oh no” under his breath.

Ling must sense the drop in temperature because he tilts his head to the side in confusion.

Ed clenches his hands, breathing heavily. “Who. ARE YOU CALLING A CHILD, YOU BASTARD?!”

“Brother, no!” Al’s arms wrap tightly around Ed’s waist, holding him back from jumping at the emperor and beating the ever-loving shit out of him.

The _jerk_ himself just seems confused. He looks between the brothers and then opens his eyes wide when they land on Alphonse. “Oh! I’m so sorry! You both look very young so I assumed you were children. I take it I was wrong?”

Al’s expression turns sour as his brother’s efforts to break free increase in measure. “Actually...I _am_ a kid. I’m fourteen.”

Ling tilts his head to the other side, a crease appearing between his eyebrows. He slowly turns his head toward Ed. “Then…?”

Al gives another hopeless chuckle, struggling to keep Ed still. “Yep, brother is nineteen.”

“But he’s shorter than you..?”

Ed, does actually, break free this time. He reaches across the table and grabs hold of Ling’s shirt collar, shaking him fiercely. “That’s right, asshole, I’m the elder Elric brother! You got a problem with that?” He gets right in his face. “You try calling me a kid again or say something smart about my height and you’re getting a metal fist in your face, GOT IT?!”

Ling blinks at him, eyes very wide. Then laughs breathlessly. “Touchy, aren’t you?” He waves away his bodyguard, who’d appeared suddenly behind Ed, knife in hand. Ed is too pissed off to be scared of her so he ignores her completely. All his attention is trained on the brat of an emperor.

Ling’s hands curl around Ed’s fists and he smiles, closing his eyes again. “I really am sorry for the misunderstanding! But can you blame me? The only westerner I knew until just a few days ago was my tutor, Mr. Armstrong, and that man was as tall as a mountain! I thought I would come here and find this to be the land of giants!”

“Did. Did you just say ‘Armstrong’?” Ed’s grip slackens immediately and Ling blinks at the shift in his mood.

Ed lets go and sits back down, exchanging a wide-eyed glance with Al.

“Erm, yes! Mr. Joseph Louis Armstrong. He was living in my palace since I was fifteen. My family hired him to teach me the English language as well as the culture and mannerisms of the western society. Now that I think of it, I first heard about the philosopher’s stone legend from him as well.” He arches an eyebrow at the brothers. “I can see that you two are familiar with him?”

Al starts, unsure how much to reveal: “We’ve...heard of him.”

“You can say we’re friends of the family,” Ed finishes for him. 

“Ah, I see.”

There is an awkward silence.

Al stares at the table in a daze, probably reminiscing. Ed stares at Ling with narrowed eyes. Ling keeps stealing glances at Ed’s unfinished plate. His stomach growls loudly and Ed sighs. The strangeness of the day had taken its toll and suddenly he feels very drained.

“Alright, so.” Al looks at him.

He sighs. “I can’t believe I’m saying this but we will work for you.”

Ling’s head snaps up. “Really?” He beams at them and throws himself at the closest person to him. Who happens to be Ed. 

Ed suddenly finds his face buried in Ling’s shoulder, the other’s arms wrapping tightly around his neck and holding him in place. Too startled to respond, the first thing Ed realizes is that Ling smells like jasmine and burnt sage. The second being that the man has no regard for personal space whatsoever.

“Oh, thank you, thank you! You won’t regret this!” Ling presses himself extremely close, rubbing his cheek against Ed’s. All the while his hand keeps patting the back of his head, stroking his hair, and his much taller frame bends slightly to accommodate for their height difference. 

Ed is paralyzed, too shocked to move or say anything at first.

Al’s soft laughter to his left finally serves as a wake-up call. 

“G-get off me, you weirdo!” He roughly pushes the other man away and adjusts his clothes.

Ling falls gracefully into his seat, still smiling brightly at the two of them. “Shall we get started right away?”

“What?! No way!” Ed starts.

“Um, let’s hold it off until tomorrow, Mr. Yao -,”

“Ling!” He corrects him happily.

Al smiles tiredly. “- Right. It’s pretty late and my brother and I still need to find a place to stay. We’ve been on the road for the past few weeks, after all.”

Ling nods easily. “Of course, of course! You’re tired. I understand.” 

Ed realizes his eyes are starting to droop. He stands up swiftly, putting his hands in his pockets. “Yeah, we’re gonna go find a hotel and have ourselves a nice, long sleep. We can meet up with you here tomorrow morning to discuss the details or whatever.”

Ling waves a hand. “That won’t be necessary.”

“Huh?”

“You two go on ahead. Lan Fan and I will have a quick meal and then catch up to you. There is no need to set up a meeting place.”

He looks at their baffled faces and smirks, cracking open one eye. “What, did you think you could get rid of me so easily?” He laughs.

Ed’s eye twitches. The headache is now pounding in his ears.

“London...is a big city....” Al says sceptically.

Ling just smiles. 

Ed’s had enough. He turns to leave. “Come on, Al, let’s go already.”

“Right. Coming!” Al scrambles after him. “Um, goodnight, Mr. Ya - uh - Ling.”

“Goodnight, Elric brothers! Sleep well!” The annoying emperor calls after them cheerfully.

Ed just holds a hand up, walking faster. He levels a parting glare at the pub owner as he passes, who only smirks at him. The tall man waves at Al.

When they finally step out into the night London air, both brothers breathe a sigh of relief.

“Wow,” Al says. “Did all of that really just happen?”

“Ugh,” Ed groans. “Don’t freakin’ remind me.” He frowns, looking at the buildings around them. “Just thinking about him gives me a damn headache. Let’s go find a place to crash. I’m fucking wiped.”

“Don’t worry, brother. It’ll be okay.” He gives Ed his trademark optimistic smile and Ed secretly thinks that maybe, just maybe, his brother is right.

Luckily for them, they don’t spend too long searching for a place as there happens to be a small hotel in their vicinity. It’s a little on the crappy side, but it’s cheap so Ed doesn’t complain.

They get two rooms and after bidding his little brother goodnight, Ed finally crashes face-first into a soft bed. He shucks off his shoes and coat but doesn’t even bother with the rest of his clothes, too tired to deal with them.

He is so. Unbelievably exhausted.

As soon as Ed shuts his eyes, he’s out like a light.

He dreams of trains and glasses of milk and of dragons who swallow up the sun. He won’t remember any of it in the morning.

He sleeps so soundly that he doesn’t hear the window of his room slide ope; doesn’t realize why a sudden cold breeze makes him shiver.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of the most interesting things I found about COS was that it showed that there were people in the normal world who were parallel versions of the people from Ed and Al's world! Just with different names and sometimes, with very different personalities. So that'll be another big recurring theme of this fic. And that's all I'm going to say! Hope you enjoyed!


	3. Detour

The first thing Ed realizes as alertness slowly nips at his consciousness, is that there is a strange droning sound in his ear. 

It’s not coming from inside his ear, he doesn’t think. But from somewhere around it. Or from behind him?

He squeezes his eyes shut, not wanting to get up just yet, wanting to get a few more minutes of sleep. Or hours. His bed isn’t the most comfortable but he’d been sleeping in trains or in the back of old trucks for the past few weeks so this one feels like a godsend. He wants to drown in it. But there is an annoying, persistent weight around his middle that’s hard to ignore and makes it difficult to relax and go back to sleep.

Mostly because he doesn’t recall there being anything resembling its shape there last night.

His eyes snap open.

The persistent sound in his ear, he realizes, is not in fact droning. It’s _snoring_. Slowly, others senses come flooding back in, as if switched on one after the other. He feels a tickle of something that feels suspiciously like hair on the side of his throat, a warm breath on his nape that raises goosebumps along his skin.

He sees the arm first. Loosely thrown around his waist and rising with Ed’s every panicked breath. The fingers twitch slightly.

The arm belonging to a body next to his. A body that was definitely not there last night.

He shrieks.

His first instinct is to fight and so he does, kicking off the assailant off the bed. There is a startled yelp, followed by a thud as the body connects with the ground. 

Ed immediately gets into a fighting stance, crouching on the mattress, and wishing once again that he still had alchemy with him. He had no weapons on him but maybe if Ed used the element of surprise he could take down the obviously larger than him target quickly, hopefully break a few bones in the process.

“Ow…” A pathetic whine comes from below him. The invader had fallen ungracefully flat on his face, his ass sticking up in the air. He makes no move to attack Ed and suddenly Ed blinks. _Wait a minute_.

The long black ponytail, the loose yellow shirt. He remembers seeing them somewhere. In fact -

“Ling?!”

The man does slowly push himself to a sitting position off the carpeted floor of Ed’s hotel room then, rubbing his head. His messy bangs are even messier in the morning and his expression is twisted in pain. “Talk about a rude awakening,” he jokes weakly.

“What. The ever-loving fuck are you doing here?!” Ed shouts, the whole bed shaking with the force of Ed’s fury and embarrassment. His right hand grapples for the nearest object to throw at the asshole and it closes around a bedside lamp. He shakes it menacingly at Ling.

Ling actually shrinks back, holding up his hands. “Hey, hey, now. Let’s calm down.”

“You want me to be calm?! ”

“I told you guys I’d follow you two, didn’t I? Why are you acting so surprised?”

“I knew that! What the fuck did you climb into my bed for, you creep?!”

Ling blinks at him, tilting his head. “Where else would I sleep?”

“You could get your own fucking room for one!”

Ling shakes his head. “I already told you. As your employer, I have to remain close to you Elric brothers. Sharing the same space just makes it easier to keep an eye on you.”

“Then just sleep anywhere else!”

“There is nowhere else!” 

Ed whips his head around the room. He’d been too tired to notice last night that indeed, aside from Ed’s bed there were barely any other furnishings. Just two chairs and a tiny wooden desk occupied most of the space of his tiny hotel room. He has a point, Ed’s mind supplies unhelpfully. He tells it to shut the fuck up. 

“Then sleep on the floor, I don’t give a damn!” He growls.

Ling huffs, crossing his arms. “That is so undignified. An emperor would never lower himself to sleeping on a dirty floor of some cheap hotel.”

Ed points the lamp he’s still holding in his grip threateningly at Ling. “You were the one who said you wanted to see what it’s like to live as a commoner yesterday, didn’t you?!”

Ling blinks up at him. “I said what now?”

Ed screams in rage, the lamp in his metal hand finally snapping in half under the force of his grip.

Suddenly something whizzes past his head, barely missing his ear. 

A sharp objects has lodged itself on the wall next to him and Ed reflexively ducks down, rolling off the bed. He lands on the balls of his feet just a few inches away from Ling .

A new figure has appeared on his windowsill. “My Lord, are you alright?”

Ling smiles brightly at Lan Fan. “Perfectly fine!”

Ed glares at her. “Hey, what the hell! You trying to kill me now?!”

She glares right back. “No. If I was, you would be choking on your own blood right now.”

Ed is just about to retort exactly what he thinks of that when there is a sudden banging on the other side of the wall. 

They all whip their heads toward the sound. In a flash, Lan Fan is crouching between Ling and the door, shielding him with knife at the ready. Seriously, where does she get them?

The door knob jerks as someone fiddles with the lock and Ed hears a muffled voice.

Then Alphonse is bursting in, wide-eyed. “Brother, are you alright!” He stops short when he sees the scene before him, his spare keys clenched tight in his hand. 

He relaxes slightly when his eyes find Ed, whole and unharmed, just looking extremely pissed. And then his gaze lands on Ling and Lan Fan on the floor. “Ling?! W-what...” There is an awkward silence. “Um, am I _interrupting_ something?” He asks, sounding lost and looking between the three.

“Not at all! Good morning to you, young Elric!” Ling waves at him cheerfully. He says something quickly and quietly in his language to Lan Fan and she stands up, concealing her weapons once more. She levels one final glare at Ed and then she’s out of the window.

“Seriously, what is it with you two and windows? Can’t you just use doors like normal people?” Ed grumbles, watching her go. 

Ling opens his mouth. 

Ed points a finger at him. “Wait. Don’t answer that.” 

Ling closes his mouth.

Al is still looking around in confusion. “What was all that noise? I heard banging and shouting. I thought you were in trouble!”

Ed rolls himself to his feet and looks at Al, gestures at Ling still sitting cross-legged on the ground. “Found this idiot sleeping with me in my bed. That’s what all the commotion was about.”

Al’s eyes widen, his ears turning red. “Um-”

Ed then realizes how that must’ve sounded and yells in alarm: “W-wait, no! Absolutely not like how that sounded!”

Al won’t meet his eyes. “Whatever you say, brother…”

“Alphonse!”

Al suddenly takes a step back from him, waving his hands. “Hey I’m not gonna judge, you know that.”

Ed makes a miserable sound. How did they even get here?

Ling just continues to watch them calmly but with interest from his spot on the floor. His face is propped against his hand, a shitty smile tugging at the corner of his mouth and partially hidden by his palm. 

Ed pokes his leg with the toe of his automail foot. Ling yelps at the contact. “Aren’t you even going to say something?”

Ling shrugs. “Oh, no, I don’t want to interrupt a conversation between brothers.”

“Like that’s stopped you before,” Ed mutters.

Ling prods curiously at Ed’s left foot. “Your toes are very cold. And hard. Is your foot made of metal too?” He sounds fascinated, like a child.

“Don’t change the subject, asshole!”

Ed looks helplessly at Al, who’s backed away to the door and was trying to sneak out quietly. He smiles sheepishly at Ed when he’s caught. “Um.”

Ed groans and drags a hand down his face. “Look, Al, just go. I’ll explain everything later.”

“Sure, brother!” There’s an impatience in Al’s voice as if he can’t wait to leave. Traitor.

“I’ll see you downstairs in a few.” He just manages to call out before Al is out of the room and the door slams behind him.

Meanwhile, the emperor was ignoring them both and when Ed glances down at him, he’s openly prodding and poking at Ed’s leg, twisting this way and that to try and examine it from all sides. Ed has to really resist the urge to kick him in the face. He probably would if he wasn’t so sure that his crazy bodyguard would actually kill him this time. And who would take care of his little brother then if he was gone?

“Oi.”

Ling finally looks up. “Hm?”

“Stop that.”

Ed decides then that it’s too early to deal with this shit without a coffee in hand. He walks away and gathers up his wrinkled coat. “Let’s go. You wanna get started on your mission, don’t you?”

“Yes!” Ling beams, resolutely keeping his eyes shut. Seriously, how does the man _see_?

Ling straightens then and finally pulls himself to his full height. Ed sees for the first time just how tall he is. There’s at least a good head size difference between them. With his long limbs and broad shoulders - how the hell did he even manage to fit on that tiny bed with Ed?

Ed decides to stop himself right there and then before his thoughts take him to places he will regret.

Ling scratches his chin and yawns. His stomach growls loudly. He smiles sheepishly at Ed. “Breakfast first?”

Ed sighs, resigned. “Breakfast first.”

When they get down to the lobby, Al is already waiting for them. He looks well-rested, not a hair out of place. Somehow he always seems so well put-together. Ed envies it a little.

He smiles warmly at the both of them, maybe a little smugly in that ‘I have something embarrassing to bribe my brother with later’ way. 

“Hey, Al.” Ed looks around but doesn’t see any sign of the emperor’s bodyguard so he assumes that she’s probably lurking in the shadows.

“Hello again, you two. So what’s the plan?”

“Food!” Ling butts in, leaning around Ed.

Al raises an eyebrow.

Ed nods. “Let’s go have breakfast first and then we’ll discuss our plans.”

Al laughs, “Food it is.”

On the way there the first thing Ed does is fill his brother in on the events from last night and this morning.

The streets are already busy, despite it being early morning. They earn a few curious or disdainful looks but Ed wholeheartedly ignores them.

Al just nods along to his explanation, his eyebrows knitting in a wondering frown. He looks partly uncomfortable and partly curious. “Well, he did say he’d follow and meet up with us. I just didn’t expect him to find us _that_ quickly.” He gives a disbelieving chuckle. “He sure is a curious fella, isn’t he,” he says in German.

Ed snorts. “Curious is not the word I would use, Al.”

“Well, at least he doesn’t seem to have malicious intentions. It’s not like he did anything to you, brother.”

Ed sucks in a scandalized breath, cheeks turning red. “Ugh! Can we not talk about it anymore! Conversation closed!” 

Ling gives them a curious glance over his shoulder at Ed’s outburst, and continues walking.

Meanwhile Al gives him the expression that says ‘I’ll shut up for now but don’t go on thinking I’m forgetting this anytime soon.’

Al hums. “Don’t take this the wrong way, brother, but I am _very_ glad that he broke into your room and not mine.”

“I hate you so much sometimes,” Ed replies without heat.

Al only grins smugly in response. 

“Hey,” Ed starts as they cross the street and he falls in with Ling’s long strides. “So are you gonna tell us where you were last night after Al and I left?”

Ling blinks at him. “What do you mean? It was just as I told you.” He has to lean down slightly to talk to him and Ed hates him a little (a lot) for it.

Al is walking behind them with his nose buried in another book. Ed has to tug him by the sleeve sometimes, to direct him away from incoming traffic and to stop him from walking into lampposts or colliding with other people. He had already picked up today’s newspaper while he was waiting for them in the lobby and is carrying it tucked snuggly under his arm.

“Really?” Ed asks, sounding sceptical and suspicious at once.

Ling nods like a happy puppy. His black hair bounces with each nod. “Yes! Lan Fan and I had a very nice dinner after our meeting. Thank you very much for that, by the way!”

Ed’s expression turns to confusion. “Why the hell are you thanking us?”

Ling tilts his head to the side. “You’ll be paying for it, of course. I told the owner you would be coming back so we put it on your tab.”

Ed stops and Al bumps into him. He looks up from his book, confused and dazed.

Meanwhile, Ed clenches his hands into fists and raises his voice at Ling. “You did _what_?! Are you shitting me right now?!”

Ling just keeps on walking, unbothered. 

Ed’s outburst has earned them some looks and Al looks at him in alarm. “Ed, please calm down.”

Ed ignores him and runs after the emperor. He grabs him by the bicep, stopping him. Seething, he jabs a finger in Ling’s calm face. “You’re fucking royalty?! Couldn't you pay for your stupid food yourself instead of mooching off of us?!”

Ling smiles serenely. “Of course I could.” 

Ed falters, dumbfounded. “Then...why…??” 

When Ling just keeps staring at him curiously, saying nothing, Ed sighs. “Do you just get a kick out of pissing me off so much or something?!”

Ling smiles as he continues walking. “You are very easy to rile, Edward.”

Ed growls after him. “Don’t you _‘Edward’_ me, you asshole!!”

Ling just laughs and then drops suddenly into a crouch. He leaps onto a nearby bricked fence and starts climbing. 

“H-hey, what the hell!” Ed watches in disbelief as he easily scales the low-rise building in front of them. He does it so quickly that no one would notice unless they were specifically watching him.

Once Ling reaches the roof, he turns and kneels at its edge, speaking directly to Ed and Al down below. “You two go on ahead. There is something quick I need to take care of. Lan Fan and I will meet you at the destination.” Speak of the devil, the royal bodyguard’s black-clad figure appears beside her master in a flash.

Ed yells at him, still angry. “Hey, come back here!!” He runs forward, shaking his fist upward. “We’re not done!!” 

But it’s too late. Ling and his bodyguard are already gone.

Ed glares darkly at the spot he’d occupied just a moment ago, hands on his hips. “This guy…” He mutters.

Al chuckles as he joins him, tucking his book away. “You think he’ll take long?”

Ed shoves his hands into the pockets of his coat, walking along. “He’d better not or we’re leaving his ass.”

Al raises an eyebrow but says nothing. Knowing his brother, he can probably tell Ed’s bluffing. 

As it turns out, the emperor and his bodyguard get there before them.

“Edward! Alphonse! Over here, Elrics!” He waves at them from the back booth, earning stares and being completely oblivious to them. Subtle. Al waves back awkwardly and Ed rolls his eyes at the guy but nods in acknowledgement.

There aren’t a lot of customers at this hour and Ed promptly realizes that the pub serves as a regular food joint by the day. Which works just fine by Ed.

As they shuffle inside, Ed locks gazes with the owner. There is a silent stare-off and then the man’s expression shifts into a bright, welcoming smile. He waves at them. And Ed glares daggers. “Tch.” 

Al notices the big man and waves back at him, just as enthusiastically. Ed glares at him too when his back is turned.

They join Ling at the same booth as yesterday, sliding in across from him. He nods at Lan Fan. Instead of disappearing into the shadows as Ed had seen her do so far, she joins them and sits at the emperor’s right side.

Ed opens his mouth to ask where he’d been exactly but Ling shushes him, pressing a finger to his lips. “Food first. Business after.” Like a mature adult, Ed glares and attempts to bite his finger. Of course Ling is too quick; he snatches his hand away before he can.

He pushes menus into their hands with a smile. “Order up!”

It turns out, Ling had already ordered the food for himself before they’d arrived.

He ends up getting half of the items on the menu.

Ed doesn’t realize it at first. He and Al are both busy pouring over their own menus when Ling’s food starts to arrive one by one. They both get a light breakfast; fried eggs and an English muffin. Al orders English tea (of course), and Ed asks for a coffee. He needs it to prepare him for a whole day of dealing with the headache sitting across from him.

Speaking of which, Ling watches them with a smile and then engages in a quiet conversation with his bodyguard. Ed can hear them but he can’t understand, of course, so he ignores them.

He can’t really ignore them anymore when he looks up and most of the table is covered by plates of food.

That they hadn’t ordered.

“Where did all this food come from?” He asks, bewildered.

“Oh, these are for me!” The emperor produces chopsticks out of his sleeve (the hell?) and taps them, smiling at them close-eyed.

Ed and Al watch in horror as he begins devouring the food at once. The more Ed watches, the more he loses his appetite. He looks at Al and notes that his brother looks a little impressed. He’d rather die than admit it but secretly he is a little impressed himself too. Just a little.

“Mmhm...Lan Fan, you should try this. It’s very good!” He tells her with his mouth full.

A tiny smile forms at the corners of her lips. Ed realizes it’s the first time he’d seen her without a scowl or a blank expression. She looks younger like that, he thinks.

She gingerly pushes her hair out of her face and joins her lord, her own set of chopsticks materializing suddenly in her hand.

“Don’t tell me you expect me and Al to pay for all this too.” Ed says a little weakly.

Al either doesn’t hear him or is too lost in his own world. He’s reading his morning newspaper as he eats, folded it in half so he can hold it in one hand and keep it carefully from dipping into the food.

Ling’s eyes look up but his mouth stays chewing. He waves wildly, makes a few non-committal noises and gestures at his mouth, as if to indicate he’s too busy chewing to respond.

Ed grinds his teeth. He slams his fist on the table, not hard enough to get other patrons’ attention but enough for Ling’s eyes to widen slightly. He feels Lan Fan glaring holes into him. He doesn’t care.

“Take this seriously, dammit! Will you quit acting like such a childish brat?!” And then he stops, thinking. “Wait, how old are you anyway?” Ed’s genuinely curious despite himself.

Ling closes his eyes, swallows, and points his chopsticks at Ed. “I am your age.”

Ed blinks. “No way. You’re nineteen?”

“Yes!” He smiles.

Ed sits back down, frowning. “Are you fucking with me again? Because you look much older. I totally thought you were in your mid or late twenties, at least.”

“Ah, you mean I look mature?”

Ed shakes his head. “Not mature. Just old.”

Ling visibly deflates. “You’re so mean, Edward! Is that any way to talk to your employer and friend?” He says with a wounded expression.

“Oh, shuddup.” Ed rolls his eyes. “And for the record, we are _not_ friends.”

Ling sniffs, averting his eyes. “So mean… so mean…” His ‘sadness’ is forgotten quickly enough, though, when he resumes his enthusiastic inhaling of the food he’d ordered.

Amazingly, he finishes it all clean.

He wipes his mouth and sighs in contentment, sitting back. “So, do you have a plan on how to take me to the philosopher’s stone?” He looks between the two.

Al puts away his newspaper and glances uncertainly at Ed. “About that… There is a small problem with that.”

Ling raises a dark eyebrow. “Which is?”

Ed threads his hands behind his head, leaning back. “We threw it into a river.”

Ling chokes. “Y-you what?!” He looks at them in alarm, his eyes wide and un-blinking. ”Surely you are joking?!” 

“Nope.” 

“Why?!”

“Why else? We wanted to get rid of it.” Ed tells him bluntly.

Ling frowns, his expression more serious that Ed had seen before. He turns toward Al. “Yesterday. You said it was dangerous and that you didn’t want it to fall into the wrong hands, didn’t you? What exactly did you mean by that?”

Al exchanges a glance with Ed, unsure. _How much should we tell him?_ \- his expression seems to say.

 _Don’t trust him._ \- Ed hopes his own intense gaze conveys.

“We found the notes of the scientist who created it,” Ed starts easily, turning his eyes back to Ling. “And we found his lab. It’s destroyed now but the stone was hidden inside it. That’s where we found it.”

“His notes don’t exactly mention if it is dangerous but…” Al looks carefully at Ed.

“There is a possibility that human lives were sacrificed to create it. It is the devil’s research,” Ed spits out with clear disdain. Dr. Marcoh’s words echo in his mind, along with all the memories of their previous life. Dante, Scar, Lior, Al’s body being turned into a walking philosopher’s stone. Ed could never forget the pain and devastation such an object had wrought. It had _killed_ them both.

Al looks down. His expression is pained, no doubt remembering it all too.

Ling goes very still, his eyes growing wide. When Ed meets them he almost flinches at the intensity in them. “Human lives…?” Ed thinks he sees something like fear in their depths. Lan Fan’s own fear is written plainly on her face. When she sees Ed notice, she tries to school it into neutrality again.

“Yeah.” Ed leans forward, now looking squarely at the man. “Knowing this - knowing there’s a chance that real people were used to make it - would you still want the stone?”

There’s a tense silence as Ed watches Ling frown intensely at the table, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. Lan Fan casts her own eyes down as well, revealing nothing of her thoughts. 

Finally, the emperor breathes out slowly and lifts his head, smiles at Ed. “Yes.” He says confidently, eyes closed again in his typical serene resting expression.

“Tch.” Ed makes a disgusted noise at the back of his throat, sitting back and looking away in anger. He hates himself slightly for feeling disappointed in the man. So, he was a real bastard. So what.

“You said it yourself,” Ling starts neutrally, as if to explain, “there is a _chance_ it was made from human lives but you don’t know for sure. And even if it were true, whether I possess it or not - it wouldn’t make a difference or bring those people back. The most I could do is honor those lives by treating it with respect and care.”

Ed snorts derisively. “You’re a real piece of work, ain’t ya.”

Alphonse lightly shoves his foot into his under the table and shoots him a glance. _Behave_.

“Anyhow. This is indeed a depressing thing to know but it doesn’t change the fact that I must obtain the stone.” He looks at the brothers, his voice a little more steely than before. “Do you happen to have a plan how to fetch it out of the water?”

Al curiously turns to Ed too.

Ed sighs, unfolding his arms. “I’ve been thinking about that. I remember the spot I threw it from but I don’t remember the depth of the river since I was standing above it. If we’re lucky, it’s shallower than I remember. If not, we could always pick up diving gear and search underwater, also check the shores to see if it washed up anywhere. Maybe rent a boat too. It’d take a lot of time with just us, though, so as our last resort our _dear_ employer could always hire local fishermen or village folk to help search for it.”

“Absolutely not,” Ling tells them firmly.

Ed can’t help but be a little taken aback. “Eh?”

“This is a secret mission. I will not involve or endanger more people in this. The four of us will have to make-do.” He seems absolutely serious, with no room for argument.

Ed blinks. “Well, I mean. If you’re paying us by day, I don’t really mind honestly.”

Ling shoots him a relieved smile. “I will pay you for every day you’ve spent in my service. But only when I have the stone in my hand. I hope that is alright with you two…?”

Ed and Al exchange looks. 

“Actually… speaking of payment,” Ed grins a little evilly at the emperor. “There is one condition.”

Ling raises his eyebrows. “Oh?”

Ed places his right elbow on the table in front of him with a clank. He unrolls his sleeve, exposing the automail parts underneath. “We need to visit a surgeon to take a look at my limbs as soon as possible. You pay for the check-up and the repairs, and we’ll go along with your conditions. This was the reason we came to the city in the first place, so we’d _really_ appreciate it if we could take care of this first.” 

Ling stares a little mesmerized at his arm. “I’ve never seen such sophisticated machinery,” he murmurs with interest. 

“It’s the best around. Our childhood friend made it for me,” Ed says proudly, sharing a private glance with Al. He gives Ed a watery smile in return.

When Ed looks back at the emperor, he’s watching his face. Ed flexes his metal fingers. “Besides, if we set out on our mission and my arm or leg breaks down in the middle of it, that’ll be bad for all of us.”

Ling nods and stands up suddenly. “I accept your terms, Elric brothers! Let us officially begin our partnership!” He extends a hand toward the two of them.

Al hesitates only a little before he is standing up and shaking his hand firmly.

When it’s his turn Ed does the same, gripping his hand with his automail one. He stares him directly in the eyes, thinking: _I hope I don’t regret this later_.

Ling nods approvingly and smiles, eyes fully open this time. Ed can even see his eye that is usually obscured by his messy bangs.

That all changes when he takes his hand back and declares, excited as a child: “Alright, let’s have dessert to celebrate!”

Ed knows he’ll do it anyway, whether or not they have something to say about it. He just sighs, resigning to his fate once again.

Unsurprisingly, it turns out the emperor has a sweet tooth too.

Ling orders so fast, firing off one dessert after another in a rush before Ed or Al can stop him. 

“H-hey, don’t go crazy -,” Ed tries to tell him but Ling resolutely ignores him. Or pretends not to hear.

Al just watches in shocked silence. He looks resigned too, though. 

“So,” Ling leans his face into his palm and examines them once the waiter is gone. “Where are you two really from?”

Ed nibbles on his muffin that he still hasn’t finished. “Germany.”

Al goes back to sipping his tea. “We travel around a lot though.”

Ling shakes his head. “No, I don’t mean - ,“ he mutters something in his language in a frustrated tone, “I’m not sure how to phrase it. You two seem… distant? You always have a faraway look in your eyes. Like you are both in two places at the same time?”

Ed and Al tense immediately, exchanging a look. 

“Your home isn’t really Germany, is it?” Ling asks quietly in a conspiratorial tone, scrutinizing them with both eyes open and narrowed pointedly at the brothers.

Ed swallows his own surprise, masking how shaken up he feels with a glare. He’s about to tell the man where exactly he can stuff his questions when Ling’s posture shifts.

He draws back, face easily falling into his resting expression again. He smiles brightly over their shoulders. “Ah, never mind that! The food is here! Wow, they’re fast!”

Ed relaxes, and then groans when he sees how much dessert the emperor has ordered.

“We’re gonna be so broke,” Al voices his thoughts miserably.

Ling just waves his hand. “Don’t worry about it -mhm!” He says with his mouth full.

Ed decides, what the hell, and takes a bite out of the cheesecake in front of him. His eyes roll back in pleasure. It’s no Winry’s apple pie but it’s still pretty damn delicious.

Across from Al, he can see that even Lan Fan’s eyes light up with appreciation as well.

When they’re finished, there is a mountain of plates on their table and Ed feels a little bad for the restaurant staff.

The owner ends up giving them a discount, ruffling Ed’s hair happily. Ed growls at him, swatting at the hand. The bastard just laughs; clearly he’s taken a liking to them for some goddamn reason.

Al’s expression is pinched when they have to pay for it. The asshole emperor is nowhere to be seen, of course. He and his bodyguard vanish the moment they turn their backs.

Ed and Al find them waiting outside.

Ling is casually leaning against the wall with Lan Fan crouched at his side. They definitely stand out, earning gazes of passing Londoners.

Ling turns a sunny smile toward them. “All set to go?”

“You know, Al,” Ed says quietly as they walk toward the prosthetics shop, hands in his pockets. “I’m seriously starting to doubt this guy has any money.”

Al sighs. He was probably thinking the same. “It’s not looking too good for us, is it, brother?”

Ed glares at the back of the emperor’s head, “If he doesn’t pay up for my tune-up like we agreed, we’re breaking off the deal and ditching his ass.”

Al just sighs again. He doesn’t argue.

They reach their destination before noon.

The sign ‘Desoutter Brothers Limited’ swings lightly in the wind as they stop in front of it. Ling gazes curiously at the storefront which features different models of artificial limbs. Mostly legs.

“Welcome - oh it’s _you_ again.” The owner gives them an unimpressed look.

Ed leans on the counter. “Yep, it’s us again, doc. And this time we have this guy -” he points at Ling over his shoulder, “to pay for you to take a look at my limbs.”

“Is that so.” The owner’s voice is flat.

Ed looks at the emperor behind him, raising his eyebrows as if asking for a confirmation.

Ling reaches inside his shirt and pulls something out. An envelope that he slides across the counter. “Will this be enough?” He asks smoothly.

The man arches a suspicious eyebrow and then looks inside. Ed watches his eyes widen.

“Y-yes, this will be quite sufficient.” He stutters and Ed exchanges a relieved glance with Al.

He shoots a grateful smile toward Ling too, who gives him a slow wink.

Ed huffs, looking away at once.

“Now, then. Let’s take a look at this arm of yours, mister -?” He motions them toward a space in the back of the shop that looks a little like a workshop and an office combined. 

“Elric,” Ed says, taking a seat on the chair the man points him to.

He sits, starting to roll up his sleeve, as the others gather around him. Al, Ling, and Lan Fan all take the empty chairs in the office-workshop.

Except, Ed doesn’t expect the prosthetist’s expression to fall in open regret once he sees his automail on full display. 

“Oh, I’m very sorry but I can’t help you with this.”

Ed gapes at him. “Excuse me?!”

The man shakes his head sadly, already getting up. He pulls the envelope out of his breast pocket and hands it back to a bewildered Ling. “There is nothing I can do with this.”

Ed is on his feet. “But you’re supposed to be the best guy around! My old prosthetics were developed by you!” He remembers the manufacturer’s stamp on his old prosthetics definitely had the name of this shop. They had both been improved on by Hohenheim to make it possible for him to move the fingers and toes but well, he was gone now along with the old models.

As Ed and Al didn’t know any other manufacturers or individuals who specialized in prosthetics, they’d decided to track his store down.

The man frowns. “I am touched to hear that. However, these prosthetics you are wearing right now are nothing like I’ve ever seen. They are obviously not attached to your body with suction cups or simple harnesses like the ones I sell are."

He approaches Edward, placing a hand on his shoulder. “What you need is a highly specialized mechanic or an engineer with a background in surgery, not just any regular old doctor.”

Ed looks at him helplessly, then at Al. “Well… Any suggestions?”

The man nods. “As a matter of fact, I do know of one.” 

They follow him back to the front of the store. “My older brother who used to run this business with me. Technically, he’s retired now but if you deliver a letter from me, he might agree to see you for old time’s sake.”

He jots a quick note and hands it to Ed. “His name is Dominic Desoutter. He’s an engineer with a background in treating amputees. He lives in Dublin now. Retired there last year. He’s the one I believe who can help you.”

Ed groans. “Thanks. I guess.”

“Dublin?” Al sounds just as crestfallen as Ed feels.

The shop owner nods. “Good luck!”

“So we must go there first then?” Ling asks them outside. Lan Fan had disappeared once again.

Ed looks at the emperor. “Is...that alright with you?”

Ling gives him a strained smile. “We don’t really have a choice, do we?” He projects outward calmness but there is a hidden urgency in his dark eyes. 

Ed huffs. “Sorry, Your Royal Impatiedness. But the sooner we take care of my limbs, the sooner we’ll be able to go on your stinkin’ mission. It’s not like I wanted to take us on a detour.” He grumbles.

He shoves his hands in his pockets again. “‘Sides, you really don’t have to come along if you don’t wanna. Al and I can take care of this and then meet you back here.”

Ling smirks down at him. “And give you two a chance to run off with my money? I’m not that naive, Edward.” 

Ed glares. “Hey! You callin’ us cheats?!”

Ling hums. “No. But I can tell you were thinking it.”

Ed scowls at the smug emperor, ears turning red. “Ugh. Why, you…! You don’t know anything!” He grits out, before storming off. He catches up to Al, Ling’s soft laughter following him. 

“Are we heading back to the hotel or should we set out right away?” Al looks up from a map he’s studying, turning toward Ed.

Ed shakes his head. “No to the hotel idea. Let’s not waste any more time. I wanna get this done quickly as much as that jerk.” He clutches his right arm. It’s been moving suspiciously slower today and Ed doesn’t like it. He hadn’t told Al because he knew his little brother would only worry and fuss needlessly. 

Ed turns his eyes to the sky. His stumps had started aching in the past hour; whether it was a sign of his anxieties or incoming bad weather, he can’t really tell. It hasn’t rained yet but either way it’s turning out to be a gloomy, cloudy day.

Al looks up too as Ling joins them. “Let’s catch a train before the rain starts, then.”

Ed nods, “Yeah.”

They decide to pick up some quick supplies on their way first. Nothing that would slow them down, however, and they resolutely keep the emperor away from any food stands or cafes.

“So. I’ve been meaning to ask,” Ed says as he walks beside Ling.

“You can ask me anything you like!” Ling tells him happily. 

“This…. _qi_ thing that you mentioned yesterday. What is it exactly?” Ed hates himself a little for being curious and speaking to the jerk at all, but he can’t help it. He’s been wondering about it all day and having an inquisitive mind has always been a big part of his nature, after all.

Ling hums thoughtfully. “Qi means life-force. It’s an energy that lives in everything and everyone. It permeates and connects the entire world.”

Ed stares in wonder, mouth parted. It sounded a bit like what Teacher had taught them. He can’t help but feel a little excited. “ _One is all and all is one_ ,” he recites from memory.

He can feel Ling’s surprised gaze on him, his steps faltering a little. His eyes are open and staring at him a little widely. He blinks, then smiles. This one feels different though, a little more genuine than his usual ones. “That’s right.”

Ed grins at the sky. “I’ve heard of something similar, I guess.” 

Then he looks at Ling, still smiling. “So can you really read it and tell if someone is lying? Must be pretty handy.”

Ling’s expression shifts and his grin widens. “Nope!” He says cheerfully. “I made that up!”

Ed almost trips over his own feet. “Y-you _what_?! Are you serious?!”

“Yes! Pretty clever, right? You believed it too.” He smirks.

Ed glares at the man, muttering ‘ _Fuckin’ unbelievable_ ’ under his breath.

He looks behind to see why his brother is quiet and finds Al giving him a curious look.

“What,” he says flatly.

Al’s expression is interested but he has the early beginnings of a smirk. “You _know_ , Ed,” he starts softly so that Ling doesn’t hear, “It’s weird to see you so worked up over someone.” And there’s definitely a sly undertone in his voice.

Ed sputters. “Tch. If the emperor brat thinks I’m going to bow down and kiss his ass, he has another thing coming!”

Al’s definitely laughing internally at him, his eyes twinkling with a mischievous light. “I don’t mean that, Ed! It’s just that you’ve only known him for a day and you’re already fighting like old friends.”

Ed rounds on him. “The hell do you mean by that! It’s not because I like him or anything like that, got it?! He just gets on my nerves like nobody else! Not even Colonel Bastard pissed me off this much! This one’s got a talent!!”

He growls. “Stop laughing, you ass!”

Al does calm down, though he’s still smiling cheekily at him. 

Ed huffs and resumes walking. They’d fallen a bit behind and Ling had stopped, waiting for them to catch up. His black hair flutters behind him in a gentle breeze.

“‘Sides,” Ed continues. “Friends don’t antagonize each other all the time. You and me don’t.”

Al sighs in that ‘you’re hopeless, brother of mine’ way. “That’s because we’re family, Ed. That’s different.” He pauses. “And we do argue plenty; your memory is just selective.”

Ed makes an annoyed sound. “You’re the worst, you know that!” 

The annoyance in his voice throws Al into another fit of giggles and when they reach Ling, the emperor is wearing an unreadable expression. He turns swiftly and starts walking again without a word.

It does start raining then - pouring, really - and the group slips into an alley. They stay close to buildings, hoping the rafters will shield them somewhat from the rain.

The streets are all but deserted, the alleyways even more so.

For someone who’d supposedly arrived only recently in this city, Ling seems incredibly familiar with these hidden routes. He leads them silently and really, when _did_ he take the lead?

Ed is even more confused when he slows his pace. “We’re being followed,” he says quietly so that only the brothers would hear.

Al gasps and Ed stiffens. He strains his hearing and listens closely and sure enough - there’s a sound of quiet footsteps, sloshing water against the asphalt. Ed curses inwardly, wondering why he hadn’t noticed it sooner.

Ahead of them, Ling abruptly stops. There’s a figure in front of him. 

“Well, well, well.” It’s a man dressed in shabby clothing, grinning at them maliciously. He pulls out a knife, pointing at their group. “I suggest you hand over all your belongings before my friend here and I carve up your pretty little faces,” he says, spitting.

Ed looks over his shoulder and finally gets a good look at their pursuer. It’s another man he doesn’t recognize. This one is big and he’s holding a long metal pipe, swinging it from side to side threateningly. Just common riff raff, then. 

_This won’t take long_ , he thinks and exchanges a look with Al. His brother looks a little worried and Ed hopes his own expression reassures him.

He might not have his alchemy anymore and he might be a little out of practice but he was still a capable fighter. There’s no way some loser muggers would beat him.

“A terrible idea, really.”

He whips his head toward Ling.

The criminal number one scowls at the emperor’s casual tone and the next moment - he’s being elbowed hard in the stomach, flipped over Ling’s knee, and goes flying. He hits the wall and crumples, dropping his knife.

The man behind them roars and Ed gets into a fighting stance, shrugging off his coat dramatically and dropping it to the ground.

Before he can land a punch on the man, though, Ling slides in between them. His leg connects with the man’s jaw, the kick powerful enough to make a sickening crunch as it connects.

Blood spurts from his mouth as the man stumbles, groaning.

Ling doesn’t even give him the chance to recover as he grabs the back of his head and slams him face-first into the wall.

The brothers watch as the last attacker slides down the wall and drops to the ground. 

All of this happens within the span of a minute.

Ed realizes he’d been holding his breath. He lets it out once he notes that the man on the ground is still alive. Both of them seemed to be unconscious, bleeding onto the rain-soaked pavement.

“Are you two alright?”

They look up at Ling’s calm voice. The man squints at the two of them, probably assessing if they’re been hurt somehow. His mouth is a flat line and he shakes the rain droplets out of his hair like a dog. His bangs stick to his face, looking even darker when they’re wet.

“Um…Yeah, we’re - okay.” Al replies quietly, probably just as taken aback.

Ed lets out an exasperated breath, and bends down to pick up his coat that was steadily getting wet now. “Ugh, you didn’t even leave one for me.”

Ling raises an eyebrow at him. “Would you prefer that I had?”

Ed glares. “Uh – Duh? I haven’t had me a good fight in a while.” He folds his arms. “We can take care of ourselves, you know.” He says a little more seriously then.

Ling huffs something that sounds like a chuckle. “I’ll keep that in mind next time,” he says as they resume walking toward the train station.

“Wait!” Al exclaims.

“What is it?” Ling looks over his shoulder.

“We can’t just - leave them here. What if they try to hurt someone else!”

Ed realizes what his brother is trying to say. 

“Do you have a better idea?” Ling throws a quick disdainful glance toward the unconscious pair.

Ed looks behind them, narrowing his eyes. “Did you two notice any telephone booths around?”

Al’s eyes light up. “Yes! We passed by one on our way here. It was right by the entrance to the alley.”

“Well, that’s convenient.” Ed fishes for spare change in his coat pocket, walking backwards. “I’ll be right back. Don’t get into any trouble without me, will you.”

He holds his coat above his head, as futile as it maybe be, as he retraces their steps and finds the booth Al was talking about.

The rain seems to let up a little - thank heavens for small mercies - as Ed steps out once he’s done leaving an anonymous phone call for the London police to come pick up the two thugs.

He hurries back and finds Al and the emperor in the same exact spot. Al is fiddling with his hands, looking nervously in the direction he’d left. Ling is leaning against the dry portion of a wall, looking lost in thought. He nods at them when they spot him, and they don’t waste any more time and continue their journey.

Hopefully, they wouldn’t encounter any more delays.

They walk in silence for the rest of their trek and Ed thinks about the events in the alleyway. He hadn’t expected the emperor to be proficient in fighting at all. But he obviously was incredibly skilled; his honed body was a testament to that. 

He realizes he hadn’t really considered Ling to be truly dangerous until now.

Eyes trained on the emperor’s back, he can’t help but wonder what other secrets Ling could be hiding from them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact: the name of the prosthetics shop that they visit is based on one that actually existed!! a lot of the things in this fic will be based on real places/people with *some* changes here and there. of course most of my knowledge comes from personal research and the internet so if i get anything wrong, i do apologize OTL
> 
> nothing gives me more pleasure than writing these three being idiots so this chapter was super fun to write! thanks for reading!!


	4. Long Road

The rain stops by the time they reach the train station.

Despite the crappy weather, there are plenty of people milling about, Ed notes.

“How many tickets?” The stern-looking lady at the ticket booth doesn’t even look up as she asks.

Ed leans his elbows on the counter. “That’ll be three, oh wait - four - right, Ling?” He looks over his shoulder. Only to be met with empty space where the emperor had been standing just a moment ago.

Ed does a double-take. “What the…?! Where did he go?”

Ling’s been pretty quiet since the alleyway incident and he’d let the Elrics take the lead as soon as they reached the station. Ed just didn’t expect him to up and disappear on them like this as soon as their backs were turned.

Al is looking around, his expression awfully guilty. “Sorry, brother, I wasn’t paying attention.”

“How _many_ tickets?” The woman raises her head and glowers at them. “Make up your mind or move over. You’re holding up the line.”

Ed does notice that she’s right. A line has gathered up behind them. “Right, sorry. We’ll be back.” He quickly steps aside and Al follows.

“Next!” She yells in a harsh, grating tone.

“What should we do?” Al asks in a small voice. “There is only one train for Liverpool today and it departs in half an hour…!”

Ed groans. “Let’s split up and look for him. He couldn’t have gone far, right?” He frowns, looking up at the station pole clock with narrowed eyes. “Let’s look around and meet back here in fifteen minutes.”

Al nods resolutely, “Okay.”

They run in opposite directions. Ed cups his hands around his mouth. “Ling! Ling, where are you?!”

No response and he only earns stares. He ignores them - he doesn’t have time for this.

“Where are you, you dumbass, you’re gonna make us late,” he mutters under his breath, running around to check every obscure nook and corner. Getting more and more pissed off with every second. He pushes through crowds rudely, running himself ragged with trying to spot anyone who might look like their missing emperor. But his yellow shirt and long black hair is nowhere to be seen.

Ed glances at the big clock again across the station. His fifteen minutes were almost up. “Shit. Shit, shit, shit,” he mutters, quickening his pace.

_Where was that idiot?!_

He checks his side of the station twice, feeling a rising mix of anger and worry that twists his gut. He’s thinking about the money, of course. Who’d pay for Ed’s repairs if Ling had decided to up and die on them?

Finally, his time is up. With a shaky breath, he turns on his heel and starts jogging back to their meeting place. 

All the running around has made him sweaty, hair sticking to his neck uncomfortably. 

He wipes a hand across his forehead and a sudden flash of yellow in the corner of his vision makes him stop short.

_Is that…?!_

Ed blinks and runs closer.

Sure enough, there’s a familiar tall form of a man lying completely still on one of the wooden benches.

Ed assumes the worst. “Ling! Holy shit - don’t fucking tell me you’re dead -“

He crouches by the emperor and rolls him over to see his face properly. It’s a little paler than usual. “Ling! Snap out of it, you idiot!” He fires, panic creeping into his voice. 

Ed shakes him roughly and when that doesn’t elicit a reaction, he slaps him with his left hand. He’s just about to do the same with his automail one when there’s a low groan below him.

“Hung..ry….”

“Ling?!”

“...”

“Wake up, you dumbass, we’re gonna miss the train ‘cause of you!” He screams right in his face. His voice must be loud enough to carry across the whole station because Al is there beside him the next moment, his hair a windblown mess from all the running.

“Ed, here! I have something that might help -” he produces the unfinished English muffin from breakfast and shoves its remains into Ling’s mouth. The emperor chokes a little in his horizontal position and Ed worries momentarily that he’ll choke and die, but he swallows it down without a problem.

They wait with baited breath.

Some color returns to the man’s cheeks and he slowly blinks his eyes open. “Edward? Alphonse?”

Al blows a relieved breath. “Thank goodness.”

Ed’s less than happy. “What the hell were you thinkin’?! Passing out on us like that?! What kind of an emperor are you!”

Ling’s stomach grumbles. “A hungry one…” he whines weakly.

Ed closes his eyes, counts to ten. “Okay, well. Hungry or not, we can’t miss our train.”

“Brother.”

Ed looks at Al. His brother looks determined. “The train is leaving soon. How about I go and buy us tickets before they’re all sold out. You can bring Ling and join me at the booth. I’ll be waiting for you guys there.”

Ed balks. “Bring him? You want me to carry his ass? Do I look like a mule or something?” 

Al glances down at Ling, who’s once again on the verge of passing out. “Well, it doesn’t look like he can walk. Not in this state, anyway. And you’re stronger with your arm. Sorry.”

Ed grumbles, “Unbelievable.” But acquiesces. “Fine. We’ll meet you by the booth.”

Al nods, smiles, and then runs off.

Ed sighs, looks down at the prone body of the man. “For the record, you definitely owe me for this.” He bends down, wrapping his arms around Ling’s waist, and hauls him over his shoulder. He stumbles a little under his weight. “Ghhgh!”

Ling’s heavier than he expects. Ed can’t help but be surprised when he realizes that his solid mass is mostly made of hard planes and sinewy muscle. He shouldn’t be, really, not after that display in the alley which clearly showed that Ling was a skilled fighter. But it was still unexpected considering how frequently and how _much_ the guy ate. His metabolism must be so fast that he constantly needs to replenish his blood sugar; otherwise he burns out like right now.

__

__

Ling makes a weak noncommittal grunt against his shoulder.

“Yeah, yeah. Just shut up and let me do all the work.” His shoulder is definitely going to be sore tomorrow, Ed thinks as he slowly staggers toward the ticket booth.

There is a familiar black-clad figure beside Al. 

“Young Lord!” Lan Fan’s worried voice calls out when she spots them. She’s holding something in her arms. Is that -?

“Food…” Ling whimpers. “I smell...food…”

“You and your damn food can wait. We gotta board the train first.” Ed grabs two tickets out of Al’s outstretched hand and heads straight for the train, not even waiting for the others to catch up. His whole body was starting to shake with the effort of not dropping Ling so he wants to get onboard as fast as he can.

He earns quizzical looks because of course. But he pushes right past, not even caring if he bumps into people. “Excuse me! Coming through! Make way, dammit!” The other passengers part before him like the sea, their expressions varying between outrage and bewilderment.

Finally, he reaches their row and unceremoniously dumps Ling onto the closest seat. The other’s head bounces slightly and he winces, letting out a pathetic sound. “Ow…” 

Ed makes a groan of his own as he plops down into the other seat, his shoulder hurting like hell. “Fuck, you’re heavy.”

He rubs it and when he looks up, Lan Fan is looming over them, glaring down at Ed. 

Al is running up behind her.

As soon as her eyes fall on Ling, though, her expression changes into one of sympathy. “My Lord, I’m so sorry for being late! I came as fast as I could.”

She lowers her arms to the table, and all the food comes spilling out. Ed sees pastries, fruits, something that looks like dumplings but bigger, sweet breads, and some other stuff he doesn’t even recognize. A part of him wonders if it’s all stolen. He doesn’t ask.

Ling’s nose twitches and he immediately sits up. His face splits into a wide smile and he doesn’t waste any time in reaching for the food and shoveling it in his mouth.

“Mhmmh! Don’t worry about it, Lan Fan!” He says enthusiastically while chewing. “Thank you so much for all this!”

Ed sees the bodyguard’s expression soften. She nods at him. “Of course, Young Lord.” Her smile is fond, and a little resigned, as if she’s used to delivering emergency food piles for the emperor.

It reminds Ed a little of how Al looks at him sometimes. Full of helpless affection. He looks away quickly, feeling like he’s interrupting a private moment. He might not trust her or even like her but he can respect her devotion. He knows a little of what that’s like, after all.

Al joins them finally and he flashes a relieved smile at Ed. “All good?” He nods at Ling.

Who’s making quick work of the food. Lan Fan slides closer to the window, allowing Al room to take a seat across from him.

Ed snorts. “We made it on time and we didn’t lose any member of our group. That’s pretty ‘good’ in my book.”

Al nods, relaxing. He shucks off his coat and Ed remembers to do the same.

There is one last call for boarding and then the train slowly lurches into motion.

\---

The sounds of the train and the background chatter of other passengers lull Ed and he spends his time dozing, flitting in and out of consciousness.

Trains always made him so damn sleepy.

Between the naps, he cracks an eye open to check on his companions every so often.

Al’s been reading the same book since the last time Ed had closed his eyes. Lan Fan is staring out the window with a blank expression, as she has been for the past hour or so, and Ling -

The emperor seems to be nodding off too, his chin tucked into his chest and his arms folded. His inky hair spills gracefully around his face, exposing only one side to Ed. He looks to be frowning in his sleep, which Ed finds weird for such a carefree guy.

Ed yawns and shifts around again, getting comfortable. The pain in his shoulder was just a distant pulsing ache now.

As he stares ahead through half-lidded eyes, Al suddenly puts his book down and turns hesitantly toward Lan Fan.

Ed sees her tense up and then turn slowly to face his brother.

“Lan Fan, this might seem like an odd request but could you tell me more about your country?” He asks her quietly.

She narrows her eyes, giving him a suspicious glance-over. “Why?”

Al shrugs, his expression changing into an embarrassed smile. “I’ve only ever read books about China, but never been there. It seems like there’s so much more to know and I’ve always been curious. And well...seeing as you and Ling are the first people I’ve met who are from there, I thought I would...ask?” 

When he sees her surprised expression, he adds quickly: “You don’t have to, though, of course! It’s completely up to you haha…”

Ed watches her mull it over and then shrug. “Why not.”

The last thing he sees before passing out again is his brother’s relieved smile as Lan Fan opens her mouth and engages him in a quiet conversation. 

The next time Ed comes to, there’s a heavy weight on his shoulder. Thankfully, not the shoulder that was hurting earlier but still. This was getting ridiculous.

He opens his eyes slowly and registers a soreness in his neck too. Damn it.

Al and Lan Fan have been surprisingly quiet and he looks up, blinking the sleep out of his heavy lids. When Al notices that he’s awake, his expression twists funnily. He’s trying not to laugh, Ed realizes.

His gaze moves over to Lan Fan, who just gives him an incredibly unimpressed look.

And then he turns to look at Ling. Or rather, attempts to.

He can’t really, because Ling’s head was currently occupying his shoulder, explaining that hard weight on his shoulder that was making it go stiff. Ling’s breaths are calm and even, and Ed didn’t even realize he was unconsciously syncing his own breathing with his.

“Uh,” he starts.

Al does snicker this time at his expression but he tries to cover it up with a cough.

The said cough rouses the emperor sleeping on his shoulder and his eyes start fluttering open slowly.

He looks confused and sleepy and when his eyes lock with Ed’s, clarity floods them and they fall shut in his typical relaxed expression. “Ah, are we there yet?” His breath is so close to Ed’s ear, making the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

“Yes, Young Lord,” Lan Fan replies calmly.

Ed takes this opportunity to place his automail hand on Ling’s cheek and not so gently shove him away from himself. “You heard your bodyguard. Now get off of me. I’m not your damn pillow.”

Ling rubs his face, shooting him a wounded expression. “Believe me, I know. No pillow is this violent or foul-mouthed.”

“Excuse me?!”

“You are excused.” Ling tells him happily.

Ed makes a series of frustrated sounds. To his annoyance, Al is openly laughing now. At _him_.

“Shuddup,” he growls at him. 

Al puts his hands up in a peaceful gesture and checks his watch. “We should be arriving right about now,” he tells them a little more seriously.

Lan Fan nods. Then glances at the emperor. “Are you feeling hungry at all, Young Lord?”

Ling smiles at her. “I’m good for now, thank you for asking.”

“That’s a relief,” Ed grumbles. “Just so you know,” he says, turning to the man beside him, “the next time you collapse in the streets, you’re on your own. I’m not carrying you again, got it? My shoulder hurts like hell, thanks to you.”

Ling blinks, gaze briefly fleeting to Ed’s other side. “Would you like me to give you a massage? I’m no expert but I give pretty good massages, if I do say so myself.”

Ed’s eyes widen. Flushing, he resolutely tells him: “No!”

Ling shrugs. “A shame. It would relieve the discomfort. Let me know if you change your mind.” He stands up then just as the train starts to slow.

A moment later, it comes to a complete stop.

“Yeah, don’t hold your breath.” Ed tells him as he slides out of his seat.

\---

It’s evening when they arrive in Liverpool, and they barely manage to catch the last ferry leaving for Dublin.

This ferry is a lot bigger than the one they’d been on previously and predictably more pricey.

Ed, very grudgingly, buys himself a child’s ticket to save some money.

There’s no way he’s ever telling anyone though - he’s fully intended on taking this secret to his grave.

He almost expects Ling and Lan Fan to act surprised, but travelling by water seems to be nothing new to them. Of course. They must’ve sailed on a boat to get to this continent themselves.

The two of them follow him and his brother, and then break off into their own group. Through a window Ed watches them have a private conversation on the outer deck before Lan Fan nods and disappears somewhere.

The emperor watches her go and then turns his back to the window and to them. He stares out the water, leaning his elbows on the railing. His ponytail whips wildly in the air. It must be cold standing out there in the sea breeze but Ling doesn’t seem to care.

Al still looks excited as a child to be on a boat, if a little more subdued. Thanks to tiredness, Ed would guess.

His brother wants to stay up, he can tell. He alternates between reading and making small talk with other passengers in their vicinity. Soon enough, though, Ed notices the tired slope of his shoulders and his drooping eyelids.

Al comes back to his seat and plops down, reaching for his book again. Ed stops him. “Al, how about you get some shut-eye? You look like you’re about to fall over.”

Al hesitates.

Ed rolls his eyes. “Go on. Get some rest, you dummy. I’ll keep watch.” 

“Are you sure, brother? What about you?”

Typical Alphonse.

“I got plenty of rest back on the train. It’s your turn now. No more arguing. Big brother’s orders.” He ruffles Al’s hair affectionately and sits back.

His brother smiles. “Okay. Wake me up when we’re almost there then.”

“Will do.”

Al breathes out a long sigh and then closes his eyes, relaxing.

Ed watches him with a small smile, and then looks down at his automail arm.

He bends it at the elbow and it makes a small, annoying creak. Ed frowns. Then sighs. He couldn’t wait to get it tuned already. Winry’s prosthetics were amazing but without a regular maintenance he really was in trouble, wasn’t he. 

_Winry_ … Wherever she is, Ed hopes she’s okay. And not too sad over them. He thinks of the last time he saw her - her tearful face stark in his mind - and his chest constricts in pain.

He looks up at the ceiling, exhaling a shaky breath, and tries to clear his mind.

He doesn’t move his arm for the rest of the night, worried about waking Alphonse sleeping beside him.

\---

Ling comes back into his sight and Ed blinks - he’s wearing _new_ clothes. Gone is the loose yellow silk shirt. In its place, he has a simple white button-up and a black coat overtop that seems more suitable to the climate. The shirt is open, of course, exposing his torso.

Ed isn’t the only one watching him. The man earns a few stares, most of them appreciative glances from the female passengers. 

Ling strolls in unhurriedly, hands in his pockets. He stops as he surveys the area and doesn’t join Ed right away.

Instead, he turns and casually approaches two young women who were whispering between themselves not too far from him.

Their eyes land on his bare chest, and both women blush and look away.

Ed can’t see Ling’s expression from this angle or hear what he’s saying but whatever it is, it works on them. They are shy at first but as soon as Ling starts talking, their eyes light up and all hesitation fades. They smile at him and bat their lashes, laughing prettily at something he says.

Eventually, they reach some sort of decision and take each of Ling’s arms and lead him away. The emperor leaves happily with them, not even glancing back at Ed once.

Ed scoffs. ‘Good riddance,’ he thinks, feeling annoyed at being ignored.

_What was it that he said about ‘sticking together’? Hypocrite_.

Ed does eventually get so bored that he picks up Al’s book and starts reading. He doesn’t want to risk nodding off when he’d promised Al to watch over him so he grabs the first thing to hold his attention.

He’s so absorbed in the book that he doesn’t notice Ling reappear some time later. He jumps slightly when he feels the other plop down beside him, throwing one arm over the back of their seats. Ed leans away from the offending appendage, as if it was personally invading his space. He tries to recover quickly from his surprise, grappling with the book to make it seem that he wasn’t taken aback or anything like that.

Ling is radiating complacency, looking entirely too pleased with himself, and Ed grits his teeth. “Had fun?” He asks flatly.

The emperor picks at his teeth and then turns toward him. “I sure did!” He grins brightly.

“Good...for you…,” Ed manages through clenched teeth, glaring holes into the book in his hands.

“Mary and Isabel were so nice, Edward. They took me on a tour around the boat and even treated me to supper! Oh, which reminds me -” he shuffles in the pockets of his coat and pulls out two buns. “I grabbed these for you and Alphonse. You two haven’t eaten anything since this morning, right?”

Ed stares at the offered food in silence, slowly closing the book. Then at Ling’s hopeful face. 

He can’t help it. He starts laughing. 

He doubles over, clutching his sides. “Y-you - hahaha-”

Ling levels him with a puzzled look. “I - what?”

Ed sits upright again, wiping tears from his eyes. “You chatted up those ladies and made eyes at them so that they’d give you _free food_?!” He chortles and Ling gives him a hurt expression. 

“And here I thought you would be grateful, not be laughing at me.” He complains. “You are so cruel, Edward.” He fakes a sob.

Ed chuckles, swiping the offered bun out of Ling’s hand and taking a bite. “Oh, quit your cryin’. I am eating it, see? There.” His eyes widen and he makes an involuntary appreciative groan. “This is - _really_ \- good. Damn. I didn’t expect the cherry filling.”

He catches a glimpse of the corner of Ling’s mouth turning up into a quick smile before the other faces forward again, folding his arms behind his head. He props his leg over his knee and shuts his eyes, sighing. “I see that my work here is done.”

In the privacy of his own thoughts, Ed, _grudgingly_ , admits to himself that maybe, just maybe, the guy wasn’t so bad after all.

Of course, it could be just his stomach talking.

\---

Al mumbles something sleepily that sounds suspiciously like “ok mom” when Ed prods him awake gently a few hours later.

Lan Fan reappears at that moment, still wearing the same full-body black suit. She never seems to notice or care about the stares her attire elicits.

She quickly goes to kneel at Ling’s side and speaks something low into his ear.

Ed can only see one side of his face but his expression turns serious as he listens, brows drawn together in a frown. He nods once and then says something back to her in their language, just as quietly.

Lan Fan nods and stands. She casts a quick glance toward Ed and then turns to take a seat beside a slowly waking Al.

“Oi, what’re you two whispering about?” Ed knows he shouldn’t prod but he’s curious. And the way Lan Fan had looked at him makes him wonder if it’s something to do with them.

Ling tilts his head to the side, wearing an innocent expression. “Hm? I’m not sure what you mean.”

Ed scoffs. “Don’t give me that! This morning, you said I could ask you anything!”

Ling gives him a private smile, cracking one eye open. “I said you could ask me anything you like. I didn’t say I would _answer_ everything, though.”

“Ugh, Fine! What do I care anyway.”

He looks away then, turning his attention back to his brother.

Al is fully awake now, yawning loudly. “So, we’re almost there?”

Ed grins. “Yep. Just think, Al. Soon you’ll be sleeping on a soft mattress in the comfort of your own bed.”

Al beams back. 

Outside, night has already fallen. 

They gather what little of their belongings they have with them and file out along with the other passengers.

Ed gives Al the remaining bun Ling had brought with him and he gobbles it up quickly.

His brother doesn’t comment on Ling’s change of outfit, opting just for tilting his head to the side and raising an inquisitive eyebrow.

They find the closest inn and crash there. Lucky for them, Dublin is a big city and there are plenty of lodges to choose from.

Al checks his watch and tells him it’s just past two in the morning and Ed groans. Way too late. He can’t wait to collapse into a bed. He would take a bath too if he wasn’t so freaking tired. Oh well, it could wait till morning then.

The emperor and his bodyguard don’t look anywhere near as tired as they follow the two of them silently. They could just be good at faking it though, Ed supposes.

He tries to get two rooms: one for him and Al, and another for Ling and Lan Fan to share but that idiot of an emperor is wholly against it. Insisting that he has to keep an eye on them and stay close.

“You two tracked us down across a huge city so I’m sure being in different rooms for the night won’t be a big deal. We’ll just be on the other side of the wall.”

“No, no, no. That won’t do at all. As your employer, it is my responsibility to keep an eye on my investments.”

“Oh, so we’re ‘investments’ now? Whatever happened to ‘partners’, huh?!”

“Semantics.”

“How’s that se- ? Those literally mean two different things!”

Al drops his bag. “Can we please stop arguing and decide already! Ed, just get one room to fit all of us - do they have one available like that? If it’s too expensive, Ling can pay for it since he wants us all to be together so much.” 

Both Ed and Ling stare at Alphonse with slightly wide eyes, mouths open.

Al blinks at them. “What? Do I have something on my face?” He yawns.

Ed is the first one to recover. “N-no, it’s just…”

“It’s rare to see your temper flare up like that, Alphonse. I suppose now I see how the two of you are related beyond just your looks.”

Al’s cheeks flush in embarrassment and he rubs the back of his neck. “O-oh, sorry. I’m just...really tired.” He yawns again; hard enough to make unbidden tears spring at the corners of his eyes.

Ed is already talking to the main desk attendant. He comes back, twirling a key around his finger. “You’re in luck. They do have a room available right now and their prices are reasonable.”

“Oh, thank goodness,” Al breathes a sigh of relief and they all slowly shuffle upstairs.

They barely make it into their room and another argument breaks out.

This time, Al isn’t there to stop them as he’d already face-planted into the first bed he saw and was out like a light.

“I already said I don’t need it!” Lan Fan glares at Ed and then at the bed in front of her, as if it personally offended her.

Ed blows a frustrated breath through his teeth. “I don’t get what the problem is, lady! This inn doesn’t offer a room with four beds so we only get these three. Ling will take that one and you can take this one. I’ll take the couch - what’s the big fuss about?”

Lan Fan narrows her eyes at him. “You wouldn’t understand!”

Ed feels like banging his head against the wall. His eyes find Ling leaning casually against the opposite wall, watching. When Ed widens his eyes in a ‘do something!’ manner, the other just puts a hand up. _I’m staying out of this_ , the gesture seems to say. The bastard.

“Look, if it’s sharing a room with all guys you’re against, you can take the spare bedroom Al’s in. I’ll just have to relocate him here if it’s bothering you this much.”

“Fool, it’s not that!”

“Then what?!” 

Lan Fan finally sighs, shaking her head stubbornly. “Like I said, you won’t understand. I am the royal bodyguard, tasked to protect the Emperor of Qing.” She gestures toward the bed. “This would be a waste on someone like me. I can sleep on the floor, I can sleep on my feet. I’ve been trained to survive on two to three hours of sleep a night, sometimes even none at all. I don’t need more and I can’t afford more while we are here on foreign soil. You can make as many offers as you like but I will still refuse. I will _not_ abandon my duty.”

Ed stares at her. “Ok, one. That’s literally insane. And two,” he stands closer to her, looking her seriously in the eyes. “Just because you can sleep on the floor and on your feet and who-knows-where-else, doesn’t mean you _should_.”

“Look,” he sighs. “Whether you like it or not, you are part of the group now. I’m not letting a girl sleep on the damn floor. My mom would literally kill me.” He thinks. “Al too, probably.”

Lan Fan blinks at him, surprise evident in her features.

Ed narrows his eyes at her, steeling his look. “And before you say anything, you are not skipping out on sleep, ya hear me? I paid for this room so - my room, my rules. Everyone is getting sleep tonight. I’m not getting on my couch until you take that bed. And if you still resist, I’ll make sure your _precious_ emperor doesn’t get a wink of sleep either.”

Lan Fan sucks in a shocked gasp at the threat, then glares at him. “You..you wouldn’t!”

Ed sneers. “Oh, wanna try me? I’ll keep him awake _all night_ , don’t think I won’t!”

“You are not thinking logically, Elric! What if something happens?! Who will protect the Young Lord?”

“There are three of us here, nothing is going to happen! Besides,” he says, glancing at Ling who stares back with a bewildered expression, “you shouldn’t be so quick to write off your emperor like that. He can handle himself in a fight, y’know.”

Lan Fan breathes out in frustration, but Ed can see her resolve crumbling a little. “That’s beside the point! He shouldn’t have to protect himself! It is my duty - ”

“Do you really wanna stand here arguing all night and keep Ling awake or do you wanna take the damn bed already so we can all, including your _dear emperor_ , get some fucking sleep?!” Ed interrupts. 

Lan Fan hesitates. She looks toward Ling who holds her expression. After a long silent exchange, her shoulders slump. “Fine,” she says quietly and then drags her feet toward the bed unwillingly, as if facing her executioner. 

Ed breathes a sigh of relief of his own. “Fucking finally.”

He casts one final look at Lan Fan’s form. She’s still fully clothed, lying still under the blankets and facing away from them, her shoulders rising with every breath. 

Satisfied, Ed makes his way toward the couch. As he takes off his coat, he realizes Ling is still awake. He sits cross-legged on his own bed, facing Ed with a sly smile and narrowed eyes. “Well done. I guess it takes one stubborn person to out-stubborn another one.”

Ling pauses. “Wait. That is a word, yes?”

Ed shrugs tiredly. “Pretty sure it is.”

“In any case, you get my point. I am quite impressed, you know. I’ve never managed to change her mind about that.”

Ed glances up. “You mean you don’t force her to sleep on the floor?”

“Of course not,” Ling replies quickly, sounding affronted.

He hesitates, and then says much more quietly: “Lan Fan takes her duty to the Emperor very seriously. Even though…”

He doesn’t finish and Ed raises an eyebrow. “Even though..?”

Ling shakes his head with an apologetic smile. “Never mind that. I shouldn’t burden you with my concerns. Goodnight, Edward.” And with that he pulls his comforter over himself, turns over, and goes still.

Ed stares at his back for a while, pondering what that could be about. This whole trip was starting to feel so surreal. Finally, he decides to leave the questions for tomorrow’s Ed to figure out and lies down himself.

Surprisingly, the couch is much more comfortable than it looks.

He is just about to shut his eyes and drift off to sleep when he hears blankets rustling to his left. He cracks an eye open.

Ling has turned toward him again and his eyes were open, giving him a hesitating look in the darkness of the room. 

Ed sighs and faces him as well. “What is it, Ling?” He asks tiredly. Best to get it over with.

Ling still seems uncertain. “May I...ask you something?” He murmurs slowly.

Ed drags a hand down his face. “Shoot.” It’s not like he has any choice. If the jerk doesn’t ask, he’ll probably keep staring at him like a weirdo for the rest of the night.

“Would it be insensitive if I asked how you got your prosthetic arm and leg?” He asks quietly, nodding at the said appendages.

Ed is a little surprised at the wording. “You mean how I lost my limbs?”

Ling nods slowly, leaning his cheek on his forearm. 

Ed pretends to think. 

“Hm... None one of your business,” he says finally in a cheerful tone.

“Eh…?”

Ed smiles evilly, parroting his own words back at him. “I said you could ask me anything. I never said I would answer it, though.”

He sees startled surprise flit across Ling’s face and then the other smiles at him, sardonic. “Touché.” 

“It’s pronounced ‘too-shay’, not ‘too-shie’,” Ed laughs quietly with no bite. “That’s another word for _ass_.”

Ling grunts in annoyance, waving a hand. “English is too incomprehensible.”

“‘Touché’ is French.” 

“Goodnight, Edward!” This time he does turn away with a flourish, effectively ending the conversation.

Ed snickers quietly to himself, closing his eyes.

There’s still a smile on his face when he slips into unconsciousness. 

\---

Ed is not a morning person.

That’s the first thing he thinks when he feels an uncomfortable pinching in his side, pulling him back into wakefulness.

“- ward, - up!”

He growls in objection, swatting at a foreign shape somewhere in his vicinity.

Unfortunately, the invading weight only persists and he feels himself being shaken.

“What?!” He finally snaps, sitting up, blinking the post-sleep haze out of his eyes furiously.

He comes nose to nose with Ling, who grins at him, abashed.

The taller man sighs in relief. “You’re awake. Thank goodness.” He’s sitting on Ed’s couch, holding him by the shoulders, and he lets go once he notices that Ed is fully awake.

Ed glances at the clock. It was still only seven in the morning. “The hell did you wake me for?!” Ed barks, getting pissed.

Ling shushes him. “Not so loud! Your brother is still asleep.”

Ed gives him a dark look that hopefully conveys how much he wants to strangle the man.

Ling pulls his hand away and laughs awkwardly. “As for why I woke you up - please don’t get mad -” he clutches his stomach and gives him a pleading expression, hoping Ed catches on.

Ed’s gaze shifts to it briefly. “Are you hungry again.” He asks flatly, voice still raspy with disuse.

Ling’s cheeks redden and he looks down, nodding and biting his lip.

Ed groans. “Can’t you just ask Lan Fan to bring you more food again.” He looks behind Ling at the bed where his bodyguard was sleeping last night and of course - it’s empty.

“I’m going back to sleep.” He turns over, facing the spine of the couch and attempts to ignore the sudden wail from the man behind him.

“Edward, please!” Ling literally clambers on top of him, and Ed lets out a wheeze. “Please, don’t leave me to starve! Who will pay for your expenses if I die?” He fake-sobs into his shoulder.

“Can’t....breathe…” Ed gasps. 

“If I climb off you, will you take me to breakfast?” Ling suddenly murmurs into his ear, sounding much more serious than before.

Ed nods frantically. 

The weight on top of him disappears immediately. “Great! You really are the best, Edward!” Ling beams down at him.

Ed sits up, panting and trying to catch his breath. “I hate you so much.”

Ling’s smile shifts into a devious smirk. 

\---

Ed washes his face and writes a quick note for Al. He doesn’t want to worry his little brother but he doesn’t know when they’d be back.

Ideally, they would return before Al wakes up into an empty room and starts fretting. 

He glares at Ling as the two leave quietly. Once they’re outside the inn, Ling perks up.

They walk some distance from it and then Ling stops, sniffing the air. “Food...There’s food nearby.”

He starts walking in the direction of it and Ed has no choice but to follow him with a resigned expression.

They end up in front of a small cafe right as it is about to open. 

The weather is actually nice and Ling decides he wants them to sit outside in the sun. The cafe staff seems surprised to see customers so early in the day and Ed hears them whisper ‘tourists’ between themselves with pointed looks.

When the waitress approaches their table with a smile, Ling starts firing off orders off the menu in his usual fashion.

Ed just watches him with an unimpressed look, cheek in hand, seriously considering taking a nap right there and then.

Once the overwhelmed waitress leaves, he raises an eyebrow at Ling. “You do know that if I run out of money, you’ll have to pay for us?”

Ling blinks and smiles brightly. “Edward, my friend,” he throws one arm around Ed’s shoulders, who tenses angrily, “as long as I’m around, you’ll never have to worry about money again. I am royalty, after all!” He crows loudly. 

“Oi, don’t just yell it out like that, you dumbass!” Ed shakes him off, glancing around.

Ling laughs lightly, shaking his head. “You really are too paranoid, Edward.”

“And you have a big mouth.” Ed snaps.

A familiar figure appears at Ling’s side. “Ah, Lan Fan!” Ling smiles at her happily.

The bodyguard looks well-rested, her face smooth and softer. She shoots an uncertain look toward Ed and then kneels at Ling’s side.

Ed watches him pull out a sealed envelope out of his sleeve and pass it to her gingerly.

Lan Fan takes it and nods. “I will return.” She says and then she’s gone.

This time Ed doesn’t even bother asking what that is about. Probably national business or some other top secret shit that shouldn’t concern him.

He looks over his shoulder and sees two cafe employees carrying huge trays of all the food Ling’s ordered. 

His companion perks up as soon as he sees them. “Wow, so fast! Edward, be sure to leave them a big tip!”

Ed actually stands up and helps the poor waiters, receiving a grateful look in return.

Ling doesn’t waste time on ceremony, delving right into the food as soon as the plates are placed in front of him.

In all the commotion, they don’t notice another pair of eyes watching them closely from across the street.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact: all of ling's misadventures with english are basically based on/inspired by my own :'^)
> 
> thank you so much for all the comments and kudos!! it makes my day to know that people are enjoying this silly little thing i'm writing for fun!! ily all <3


	5. The Beasts of Dublin

Ed sits back with a satisfied sigh, patting his belly. Despite his earlier mood, he was feeling much better thanks to their filling breakfast. He might not feel the same way once he’s presented with the bill, though, so he savors his good mood while he can.

Around them, the streets are slowly coming to life with more and more people showing up on the sidewalk, entering the cafe.

Ed glances over at Ling, who was still steadily working through his portion.

Ling catches Ed’s stare, swallows, and says: “Edward, you have to try this! It’s delicious!” He holds up a scone toward Ed’s face.

Ed shakes his head, waving his hands in front of him. “No thanks, I’m really fu – mhgh!”

As soon as Ed opens his mouth, Ling, quick as lightning, sticks it into his mouth.

Ed glares at him, for a moment considering spitting it out all over the smug bastard.

But as he chews, he realizes – Ling’s right. The small cake tastes amazing. The jam filling melts in his mouth and Ed struggles between maintaining his glare and closing his eyes in pleasure.

Ling laughs delightedly, noticing his expression no matter how hard Ed tries to mask it. “Told you,” he tells him slyly, reaching for a scone of his own.

Ed gets an idea and swipes it out of his hand, plops it into his own mouth. “Mhmm!”

Ling blinks. “Hey!” 

Ed grins. “That’s what you get for being a smug jerk, Your Majesty.”

Ling narrows his eyes. “I can forgive many things, but stealing food? Edward, I had no idea you could sink so low.”

Ed rolls his eyes. “Your fault for holding me to such a high moral standard. I’m not above playing dirty, you know.”

Ling breaks character, giving him a private smile. “Oh believe me, I noticed.”

Ed doesn’t know why that makes his cheeks heat up. He coughs into his fist. “Anyway, thanks for that cake I guess. I really am full now, though.”

Wiping his hands, Ed makes a mental note to bring some food back to the hotel for Al.

He stands up and stretches. Looks at Ling, who’s gone back to eating. Of course. “Hey, I need to use the bathroom. Don’t go anywhere, ‘kay?”

Ling gives him a thumbs up without looking up, cheeks round with all the food he’s stuffed in his mouth. His dark bangs dip into his food and have crumbs on them.

Ed pulls a slightly disgusted face that the other doesn’t seem to notice. He throws his coat over the back of his chair, pats Ling once on the shoulder, and goes to find the restroom.

All in all, Ed thinks it takes him about five minutes to get the key from a staff member and then another five to do his business.

He inspects his face in the mirror as he washes his hands. His hair is a little disheveled and he smoothens it back with his fingers. He’s had it pulled back in a ponytail since yesterday and he hasn’t had the time to brush it out this morning, thanks to Ling’s demanding stomach. Ed considers his ponytail and shrugs, what the hell. He pulls off the hair band and sticks it between his teeth. His hands reach back behind his head and separate his hair into three parts. He hasn’t worn his hair in a braid in a long time but his hands still remember all the motions. Muscle memory.

Once the hair is braided, he stands back and admires his work. It makes him look younger, he realizes with distaste. Or maybe that’s because he’s had his hair like that for most of his childhood.

He sticks out a tongue at his own reflection and then decides that he’ll keep it like that for now.

Ed hands the key back to the employee with a grateful smile and heads toward his and Ling’s table.

When he reaches it, however, he stops short, eyes widening.

Ling is nowhere to be seen.

“Excuse me, sir, are you all done here?”

Ed jumps and looks over. He hadn’t even heard the waitress come up behind him. He’d been standing there in a stunned silence.

He meets her kind eyes. “Uh, just a little more time, please. Thanks.”

He whips his head around and then stops, faces her again. “Actually, did you happen to see what happened to the guy who was sitting at this table? Where’d he go?”

She gives him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, love, but I was in the kitchen just now. He must’ve left before I came out.”

Ed sags, “That’s alright. Thanks anyway.” She leaves with one final worried glance and Ed is back to panicking.

He inspects the area again, notices Ling’s signature chopsticks. Finds one on the table, the other on the ground. The toast Ling had been eating earlier was still unfinished, as were the cream puffs. “Goddamn it, Ling! What the hell happened to you?!”

He crouches low and dives under the tablecloth to search for any possible clues there.

“Edward?”

Ed bumps his head against the table, startled. “Ow! Shit, fuck.”

He withdraws and slowly looks over his shoulder, dread in his stomach.

“Where is the Young Lord?” Lan Fan asks, blinking around the room owlishly.

When her gaze lands on the guilty look in Ed’s eyes, all hell breaks loose.

\---

“How could you lose him?! I wasn’t even gone for an hour!”

“How was I supposed to know he’d disappear as soon as I had my back turned! And since when is it _my_ job to babysit the brat?!”

“Watch your tongue, Elric, before I cut it off!” 

“Oh, yeah? Maybe you should watch your boss better!”

“Are you implying that it’s _my_ fault?”

“Well, I sure as hell am not his personal bodyguard!”

“Why, you little - !”

They are promptly kicked out of the establishment.

Ed feels a little bad. Okay, a lot. Mostly because the people there seemed genuinely nice and probably didn’t deserve him and Lan Fan almost starting a fight and causing chaos.

“Hey, mister?”

Ed dusts himself off the ground and turns. A young boy stands before him, about seven or eight, with skinned knees and ragged clothes. He blinks at him with big green eyes. He looks a little transfixed by the colour of Ed’s eyes. Ed knows golden eyes aren’t very common in this world.

“Uh - hey?”

The boy snaps out of his trance and pushes something into his hands. “This is for you. Buh-bye!” He turns on his heel and runs the other way.

“H-hey, wait a minute!”

“Edward, what is tha-?” Lan Fan’s breath catches in her throat when her gaze lands on the piece of paper in Ed’s hands. She snatches it out of his hand and unfolds it with jerky motions, ignoring Ed’s startled “Hey!”.

Her eyes scan down the page quickly.

“This is everything I was afraid of,” she says quietly, her voice terrified. “Edward, this is a ransom note.”

Ed sucks in a shocked breath. _Shit_. Did that - did that mean Ling was kidnapped right from under their nose?!

Lan Fan’s voice is sharp. “Elric! We must find out who gave this note to that child!”

Ed gets the meaning and jumps into action, taking off quickly after the kid. “Got it!”

“W-wait! Not by yourself, you fool-!” She calls after him but it’s too late, Ed is giving the chase.

He spots the back of the kid as he rounds the corner and narrows his eyes. _Gotcha_.

He pumps his legs faster, leaping over fences and carts. His automail leg slows him down a little – damn thing needed a tune-up too, but he manages to do his best to ignore it.

The child slips into a side alley and Ed follows. He skids to a halt.

Two burly men block his path, with the kid cowering behind them. “There he is!” He points a trembling finger at Ed, his eyes round and scared. “You said you wouldn’t let him hurt me!”

“Thas’ right, kiddo,” one of them says, cracking his knuckles. “No one is laying a finger on ya.” His partner growls at Ed, slowly swaggering toward him.

Ed clenches his teeth. “Are you the guys who kidnapped the black-haired guy from the cafe down the street?”

The first man grins, displaying his missing teeth. “No, but we’re covering for ‘em.”

“You ain’t going anywhere, boy,” the second one spits, flexing his massive arm.

Ed takes a deep breath and throws his coat dramatically to the ground. Al would scold him for that later but oh well. Old habits die hard.

A black figure drops quietly beside Ed. He grins, not even having to look over. “About time you showed up, Lan Fan.”

She swings her hands forward and blades slide into each of her palms. “I couldn’t let you have all the glory, Elric,” she deadpans.

\---

When the dust settles, the two thugs are lying motionless on the pavement. One of them is unconscious, the other doing a good job of serving as Lan Fan’s punching bag.

Ed notices the kid from earlier, cowering by the brick wall. He sees Ed looking and he shakes even more. “Please, please, don’t hurt me! I-I don’t know anything, I swear!” He pleads, trying to make himself smaller.

Ed kneels before him, trying not to seem intimidating. “It’s okay, kid, no one’s gonna hurt you.”

The boy sniffs, snot running down his face. “Y-you...won’t?”

Ed shakes his head. “Just tell me one thing: did you hear from those big guys who they were working for? Where’d you first meet them?”

The child shakes his head. “I-I don’t know anything, mister. They just paid me to bring you that note, that’s all.”

Ed sighs, “‘Kay.” He rises to his feet and then steps aside. “Go on, get outta here, squirt.”

The boy looks at him nervously and when Ed nods at him encouragingly, he dashes past him right out of the alley.

Lan Fan stops beating on one of the thugs, watching the little boy go. She wheels in on Ed. “You’re just letting him go?!”

Ed walks closer to her. “Yeah. He didn’t know anything.”

“He could’ve been lying, Elric.”

Ed narrows his eyes at her. “He’s just a kid, Lan Fan. Let it go.” Then he glances at the two prone bodies on the ground. “Are they dead?” He prods the closest one with his boot.

Lan Fan sighs, her blades disappearing. “No.”

Ed grins. “Great! We can interrogate them once they’re awake, then.”

The royal bodyguard stares at him. Mutters something in her language under her breath, shaking her head.

“So what did that ransom note say anyway?” Ed decides to ask, remembering it.

Lan Fan pulls down her black hood, eyebrows knitting in a frown. “’We have your Emperor. If you want his freedom, bring fifty thousand pounds to Kilmainham Gaol tomorrow at midnight. We will do an exchange under the Five Snakes in Chains.’”

Ed frowns, confused. What the hell?

Lan Fan looks at him. “And you know what else, Elric? It was written in Young Lord’s hand.”

\---

_(earlier)_

Ling looks up at the sound of a whistle and frantic running. “You, stop right there!”

Something crashes into his table and Ling’s chopsticks go flying. He looks on in alarm as a small shape crawls under his table.

He slides his chair back, steeling himself for a fight. Only, a moment later, a tiny head pops out from under the table and locks eyes with him.

_What in the world?_

“You! Sir!” Ling looks up as the frantic running stops in front of his table. Three men in uniforms are panting, trying to catch their breaths. The one who spoke to him has a huge handlebar moustache. He looks to be the most physically fit, recovering before the other two. “Did you see a small raggedy looking boy running in here?”

Ling very quickly, before they notice, shifts his gaze downward. The child, no doubt the one they were chasing, shakes his head and grasps his hands together in a begging manner.

Ling’s shoulders relax and his eyes fall shut. “Sorry, I no speak language. What you say?” He exaggerates his accent and waves his chopsticks in the man’s startled face. “Want food? Qù nǐ mā de.”

The man in the uniform draws back quickly, befuddled. “Ah, never mind that.” His companions look on, disappointed or angry. Another man says, “Don’t waste your time here. He must’ve gone that way – we can still catch him!” They all nod and vacate the premises quickly.

Ling waits until they’re completely out of sight and then looks down at the small relieved face below.

“Thank you, mister, you really saved me!” He sighs in relief, brown locks bowing in esteem.

Ling nods. “Of course.”

The child doesn’t crawl out, though, just sits back and stares at him with wide eyes.

Ling tilts his head to the side. “What is it? You can come out now, those men are gone.”

The boy hesitates. “It’s not that. Um, actually, your friend is in trouble. I wanted to tell you that, y’see... I overheard some bad men talking about kidnapping him.”

Ling raises an eyebrow. “Is that so, little boy?”

“Y-yes! That blond kid who was sitting with you -”

Ling chuckles softly, unable to resist. “Careful, now, don’t let him hear you say that. He doesn’t take well to being called a kid.”

The young boy blinks. “Well, anyway. You know who I meant! They wanna kidnap him. Tonight.”

“And why would they want to do such a thing?”

The child looks down, shaking his head. “Dunno...But I can take you to where I heard them. But you gotta come with me _now_.”

Ling narrows his eyes. “Why the hurry? I can wait for my friend and you can show it to us both –“

“No!” The boy says a little too quickly. He tries to recover. “It’s just- if we wait too long, they could leave, y’know? We gotta go right now, mister.”

Ling sits back, pondering his options. It was obviously a trap but he was a little curious despite himself. And the kid was trying _so hard_.

He slides his chair back. “Very well, take me there.” The boy’s face splits into a relieved smile and he finally shuffles from under the table.

He grabs Ling’s hand and tugs him along, makes him duck behind the nearest bushes to avoid being seen.

As he’s dragged forward, Ling thinks: ‘Edward is going to kill me.’

He smiles.

But at least that means he wouldn’t have to pay for the food.

\---

They end up some ways off, in an evidently seedier part of town.

The boy guides him through alleys and hidden passageways, obviously very familiar with them.

Finally, they arrive at the back of some bricked building. The kid smiles over his shoulder at Ling and knocks on the door twice. “Over here, mister.”

Ling tenses, his instincts screaming at him that it was a terrible idea coming here and he was an idiot, too curious for his own good. “Where have you brought me, child?” He asks, laughing breathlessly.

The door swings open and Ling is suddenly pushed roughly from behind. He stumbles forward into a big open space but catches himself from falling flat on his face.

“Funny you should ask that, kid.” He stiffens at the new voice, and slowly drags his gaze upward.

A dark-haired man grins at him, shark-like, a lit cigarette between his fingers. His appearance is thug-like and he doesn’t look overly strong but a voice in the back of Ling’s mind tells him not to underestimate him, even so.

“Welcome to the Devil’s Nest. I am the proprietor of this fine establishment. Everyone calls me Mr. Reed or ‘Boss’.”

He sighs then, throwing the cigarette on the ground and crushing it under his boot. The smile falls off his face and he puts his hands in his pockets. “Unfortunately, these pleasantries are a waste of time, seeing as you’ll be staying here as our hostage and all.”

It takes a while for Ling to find his voice. “Hostage?”

The man grins again. “That’s right, kid! Don’t worry, we treat our guests _real nice_ here.”

Ling hears snickers around the room and realizes for the first time that they’re not alone. The man just seems to draw all the attention with his presence. There are some dozen people surrounding the man – both men and women, and even _children_ , Ling realizes with a start.

Speaking of –

“Ah, and there’s our hero. You’ve done so well, little Bido. I didn’t even need to send Ulchi and Martel to help out.” He ruffles the kid’s hair and the boy glows with the praise.

“It wasn’t hard at all, Mr. Reed! He came here himself without a fight!”

The man laughs uproariously and Ling grits his teeth. “You ain’t very sharp, are you, kid?” He smirks at Ling.

Ling sneers. “Who knows, maybe I wanted to come here and meet you.”

Reed stops. “Eh?”

Ling straightens, using the voice that he gives orders with. “That’s right. I wanted to make a deal with you.”

The other man blinks and starts laughing again. He doesn’t stop for a long time and his lackeys join in too.

“Sorry, kid, but it doesn’t work like that. I’m the only one who gives orders around here.” He snaps his fingers.

Ling feels a presence and then he’s suddenly grabbed, arms being twisted behind him. He looks over his shoulder. A large man has him in his hold, his muscles rippling with power.

Ling struggles to no avail and starts sweating with the effort. Has he really made a mistake? He smiles self-depreciatingly.

“Are you sure we can’t work something out?” He tries one more time.

The man gives a cheery: “Nope!”

Ling sighs and lowers his head. Then brings it up sharply to headbutt the man holding him captive, hard enough to hear a sickening crack and for blood to spurt out of his nose. The man lets out a startled yelp and releases him inadvertently.

Ling sees Reed freeze, face twisting in a snarl. He waves his hand and Ling is suddenly surrounded from all sides.

He drops into a fighting stance. Damn it, he shouldn’t have left his dao back in the hotel room. How careless of him.

Before he can even make a move, the thugs lunge at him. One kicks at the back of his knees, making him stumble, and three more throw themselves on top of him, holding him down. Ling’s breath is knocked out of his lungs as he connects with the hard concrete.

Reed whistles, strolling closer casually. “Well, well, whaddayaknow. I really wasn’t expecting you to put up a fight.” He squats in front of him. “So. I hear you’re a pretty big deal. Royalty, huh?” His eyes glint with interest. “What’re you the ruler of, anyway?”

Ling grunts, his muscles straining against the weight pinning him down. “You’re looking at...the Emperor of China.”

Reed scratches his chin, considering. “China, huh?” He shrugs. “Doesn’t ring a bell, sorry.”

He stands. “If I’m being honest, I don’t really care where you’re from. I’m only interested in one thing.” He motions with his hand and Ling is pulled to his knees, only for shackles to close around his wrists, feet, and neck.

The man gets right into his face. “How much can we get for your head?”

Ling struggles. “You’re wasting your time. My country will not pay a ransom for me.”

“Let’s test that theory, shall we.” He turns to bark orders at his people. “Throw him in the cellar for now. And then get back to work, all of you. Who knows, we might actually get a customer today or two.”

One of his lackeys pipes up: “You keep sayin’ that every day, boss, but no one ever comes to this rat hole.”

“Hey, hey, now. Watch that attitude! What do I always say? If we don’t believe in us, who will?”

Ling watches, a bit taken aback, as the man attempts to uplift one of his underlings.

“Besides,” Reed continues, glancing back at Ling over his shoulder, “thanks to this guy, things will change around here soon enough. You guys just wait and see. We’ll get this pub into a working order yet!”

His underlings all nod with relieved smiles and the man from before bows his head in shame. “Yer right, boss, sorry for doubting ya.”

Reed just waves off his apologies. “Don’t sweat it. Happens to the best of us.”

The group starts to disperse, chattering amicably amongst themselves, as Ling is pulled toward what he assumes is the cellar room.

He digs in his heels and struggles as Reed begins to walk away. “Wait!” Ling calls after him.

The man stops in his tracks and turns slowly, arching an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

Ling hesitates. “Ah. Aren’t you going to write a ransom letter? So they know where to bring the money?”

The man claps mockingly. “Great idea! One problem with that: none of my people know how to write and only a handful knows how to read.”

“What about you?”

He scowls at him. “D’you think I wouldn’t have done it myself if I could, genius?!”

“What if I do it for you then? To add more credence?”

The man stares at him, dumbfounded. “You want to write your own ransom note?”

Ling shrugs. “Is that so strange? It’ll make it seem as if you’ve forced me to do it to prove that I really am your prisoner. They might not believe you otherwise.”

The man is silent and then breaks into loud guffaws. “I like you, kid. You think like a criminal!” He grins.

Ling cautiously smiles back.

“Just don’t think about passing a secret message to your friends or something. Like I said, I do have people who can read. I’ve been nice to you so far, kiddo, but you won’t like me if I catch you trying to pull one over me.” He lowers his face until they’re eye-to-eye and glares meaningfully over his glasses. “Capiche?”

”I don’t know what that means but sure thing!” Ling smiles as reassuringly as he can and the man stands up, seemingly satisfied. 

It was only a matter of time before Lan Fan tracked him down, with or without the note. So he might as well make the best of it while he’s stuck here.

\---

“I won’t ask you again: who do you work for?!” Ed shakes the man, giving him what he hopes is his most withering glare.

The thug’s swollen eye twitches and he looks on the verge of passing out again but he still manages to sound defiant. “Never! I’d never betray the boss.”

Ed blows out an impatient breath. “Look, buddy, you can either tell it to me or you can tell it to _her_.” He gestures with his head at Lan Fan, standing menacingly behind him. “Trust me, my way is the easy way. She won’t be so nice with you.”

Ed hears the telltale sound of blades being sharpened and the man gulps, his one open eye widening in fear. “Okay, okay! Jus’ keep her away from me.”

Ed smiles, pleased. “Well? Spill it.”

The man groans. “My employer….is the owner of the Devil’s Nest bar not far from here. I only started last week so I don’t know much about him or why he kidnapped yer friend, I swear!”

Ed stops, feeling a sense of deja vu. “Wait. What did you just say?” He frowns.

Lan Fan suddenly appears at his side and drives her elbow into the man’s face, knocking him out once again. “That settles it,” she says, straightening. “We have to go to this place. The Young Lord must be held there.”

Ed is still in a haze. “Devil’s Nest, huh...Why does it sound so damn _familiar_?”

“Elric!”

He flinches at the bodyguard’s sharp tone. 

She levels him with a menacing stare. “Snap out of it! If you’re too busy daydreaming, I’m going after him alone.”

Ed scoffs, joining her. “No way, I’m coming with you!” 

Lan Fan nods, sheathing her weapons. “I thought you might say that.”

Ed blinks, taken aback. “Yeah? Why’s that?”

He watches, surprised, as she gives him a tiny hint of a smile. “You don’t seem like the type to abandon someone in trouble.”

And then she turns, heading toward the entrance of the alley and leaving him standing in a dumbfounded silence.

Ed shakes his head. “Hey, wait up!” He quickly picks up his coat off the ground, dusts it off, and runs after her.

\---

“Mr. Reed! Mr. Reed!”

Ling hears the little kid’s panicked voice as he flies into the room, stumbling over his little feet.

He hears the boy knocking on the door the bar owner had disappeared inside of earlier. It flies open. “Bido! Back so soon? Hey, what’s wrong?” Their voices echo some distance away.

Ling pokes his head out of his cage, trying to watch. His cell was tiny, cramped. With his tall frame he couldn’t well stand up and had to crouch or crawl.

Earlier, one of Reed’s lackeys had brought him food, actually apologizing for the size of the cell. ‘ _Sorry we can’t offer you nicer accommodations, Your Majesty. This is the best we could come up with in such a short time._ ’ Ling was so shocked by the genuineness in her voice, he’d been rendered speechless for a full minute. He’d laughed then and waved it off, oddly compelled to offer comfort. ‘ _Don’t worry about it! I’ve stayed in worse places._ ’

He sees the little boy wave his arms around, sounding on the verge of tears. “We have a problem, Mr. Reed! They caught us! They caught us! I didn’t tell them nothing but those two lugheads definitely will! I’m so sorry, Mr. Reed, it’s all my fault!” His voice cracks on the last word.

Ling watches as the man bends on one knee and puts a comforting hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Hey, hey, none of that. We’re a team, remember? ‘sides, there are many of us here and only what - two, three of them? We’ll take them on, no problem, even if they do find us.”

The boy’s shaking subsides and he nods, calming down.

Ling tilts his head to the side. It was most curious.

For all their talk, these people acted more like a family than a band of criminals.

\---

“So how long have you served his Royal Highness?” Ed asks to fill the silence as they search for the bar.

“All my life,” Lan Fan replies without slowing her pace.

“Do you like it?”

Lan Fan stops. She turns and fixes him with an incredulous stare.

Ed decides to clarify, feeling stupid by that look. “You know -? Is it fun being the royal bodyguard?”

Lan Fan considers him and then gives the closest thing to a snort he’s ever heard from her and continues walking. “It is my duty,” she says simply and nothing more.

Ed shakes his head. They walk in silence for a while after that.

“So. You seem to know where you’re going?” Ed decides to change the subject.

Lan Fan nods. “I think I know where that place is. I’ve scouted the city from the rooftops earlier this morning.”

Ed raises his eyebrows. She can’t see it, of course.

“That’s what you’ve been up to all this time?” That’d explain the empty bed and her missing presence.

She hums. “Among other things,” she says cryptically and doesn’t offer further explanation.

Ed sighs. Why does he even bother. 

He decides to just shut up and follow her, with little choice but to trust her judgment.

Of course, she turns out to be right. 

They find the bar in a poorer area, almost entirely hidden in a back alley. It looks run down, deserted from the outside, garbage polluting the space around it. The sign with the name ‘Devil’s Nest’ is crooked and haphazardly made, ugly green. All in all, it looks like a place no one would ever go to unless they were a sketchy type of character.

However, when Ed opens the door cautiously, they’re greeted by a strange sight. There’s something that barely looks like a counter and barrels in place of chairs around it. Most of the furniture, if you can even call it that, looks like something that was taken straight out of someone’s trash. A few wanted posters decorate the walls, an old and busted dart board hiding what appears to be a big hole in the wall. But there are people inside lounging about and they all stop sharply and turn to face them when they enter.

Lan Fan tenses beside him, preparing for a fight.

There’s an old man at the bar who almost drops the glass he was polishing when he sees them. His face splits into a surprised, then amazed toothless smile. “I can’t believe my eyes! Boys, we’ve got customers!”

His smile falls off, however, when Lan Fan presses a blade to his throat. “Where is the Emperor! Where are you keeping him?!”

It’s all chaos from there.

Ed thinks they go through a dozen men in the span of five minutes. The bar occupants lunge at him and Lan Fan, fighting with all they’ve got. Lan Fan fights like a force of nature, Ed observes as he ducks under a well-aimed kick at his head.

He’s no amateur himself, of course, just a little rusty. 

“Hey Lan Fan, don’t kill anyone okay?!” He yells over the noise as adrenaline rushes through his veins. He dodges broken bottles thrown at him and jumps into the air, about to slam his right elbow into his current opponent. As soon as it connects, and the man crumples to the ground, Ed realizes his mistake.

Under the force of the impact, his automail mechanism makes a weak whirring sound, and then promptly stops moving. “Damn it! Not now!” Ed yells in frustration, sweat gathering on his forehead. 

The timing couldn’t be more awful.

He tries to fight the rest of the men with only one arm. This mostly involves ducking a lot and trying to keep his vulnerable side away from them.

Lan Fan must notice him struggling. “Elric! Are you in trouble?” He hears her call out over their heads.

Ed grunts, landing a successful punch on the big bald man in front of him. “Peachy! Just focus on your own fight!”

He hears thumping as multiple bodies drop to the ground in succession. 

“No need,” Lan Fan says, stepping over them. “I’m all done on my side.”

The next thing Ed knows, she takes on all five remaining thugs before Ed can even blink.

Feeling a little miffed, he looks over. There’s a door at the back of the bar, and Ed can hear hurried footsteps coming closer.

“Lan Fan! I think we need to go over there!” Ed calls and takes off toward it, the imperial bodyguard on his heels.

He throws the door open, and sure enough, more thugs are making their way up the stairs. They roar at them, shouting curses and shaking their fists.

Ed sighs, then propels himself forward, kicking three in the face with his automail leg. Lan Fan takes care of the rest.

Finally, they push open the door that leads to the lowest level of the joint. In front of them is a big open room with grey walls, and more goons to take care of. With a sinking feeling, Ed realizes that some of them are children. He even spots that little kid from earlier, glaring at him angrily.

“I wouldn’t make another move, if I were you.”

Ed stops short.

He drags his gaze toward a man standing in the centre of the room, hands on his hips and grinning at them a little wildly. “It’s a little rude of you to just barge in like that uninvited, don’t ya think?”

He is...familiar. And Ed feels breath leave his lungs, his face turning pale. Memories of another bar, a mansion, a fight in the library flash through his mind and he tries not to tremble. “G-greed..?” He asks weakly.

The dark-haired man gives him a look of confusion. “Hah?”

Ed realizes something then that makes his chest untighten slightly. At first glance this guy looks exactly like Greed. But as Ed observes, it dawns on him that that’s not totally true. His _eyes_ are different. Not the vivid maroon hue he remembers, but dark grey. Ed glances at his left hand. No ouroboros mark either.

He lets out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding all this time. _Of course_. There must’ve been a human once that the Greed from his world was based on too.

The man - _not Greed_ \- turns and yells over his shoulder. “Oi, is this supposed to be your knight in shining armor, come to rescue you?”

A familiar, cheery voice calls out from somewhere behind him: “Sure looks like it!”

Ed’s eyes widen and he remembers why they’re here. “Ling?!”

He sees a cell in the back of the room, poorly made by the looks of it, barely large enough to fit an adult-sized person. A familiar head pokes out from between the bars and Ling waves at them, smiling. “Hi Edward! Lan Fan!” He looks alright, not hurt or anything at all. He has some dirt on his cheek and his clothes, but otherwise it’s the same old Ling.

“Young Lord!” 

Ed flinches, having guiltily forgotten about the bodyguard being there but suddenly she’s in front of him. Her blades are out and she glares daggers at the Greed lookalike, baring her teeth. “Release the Emperor right now!”

The man only smiles lazily. “Sorry, sweetheart, but no can do. We need that money. And if you two don’t get outta here right now,” he looks between her and Ed, “well, I’m afraid we’ll have to take care of you. No hard feelings.” He snaps his fingers and suddenly they’re surrounded again.

This time they’re ready. Ed jumps headfirst into the fight and tries to take out the targets closest to him. He ignores the children who come running at him too, shoving them back away from himself and only goes for the adults. He does his damndest not to hit too hard by accident, still feeling shaken up by the parallels between this and that fight in Dublith, a lifetime ago.

He had actually, felt terrible about what happened to Greed and his lackeys but he never told Al. He knew Al had become friends with that girl, Martel, despite having been kidnapped by her and her friends.

Distracted, Ed gets punched square in the face and goes flying. He grunts as his back connects with the wall. “Ow…” He rubs his nose.

“Elric!” Lan Fan snaps at him. “Free the Young Lord! I’ll take care of them.” And Ed watches, somewhat amazed, as she takes on the rest of the thugs all by herself with seeming grace and ease.

He sees her square off against another female opponent, who grins at the bodyguard as they trade blows. “Not bad for a girl,” she tells her languidly. Lan Fan only scoffs, and fights harder. 

Ed nods, jumping to his feet. “You got it!”

He runs past them, dodging blows and kicks until he stands in front of the Greed double. He _really_ had to stop calling him that in his head.

“I never got your name, mister.” He tells him quietly, clenching his fist.

The man smiles, holds his arms open and bends slightly in a mock-bow. “Gale Reed, at your service. Nice arm you got there, by the way.”

Ed looks down at it, then covers it with his left hand protectively.

The man’s smirk widens. “Looks pretty fancy. Might make me a fortune once I take it off of you and sell it for parts.” He widens his stance, curling his fists in front of him.

Ed scowls. “I’m not gonna fight you.”

The man tilts his head. “And why’s that? Don’t you want these?” He pulls something out of his pocket and dangles over his head. Keys. They must be from Ling’s cell. 

Ed narrows his eyes at them.

“Well, you’ll have to go through me fi- hey!”

Ed charges at the man, plants his foot on his chest and rips the key out of his hand while he staggers, off-balance. He falls backward with an ‘oof’ and Ed doesn’t waste any time in running toward where Ling is held.

He skids to his knees in front of the cell and fumbles with the lock.

“Edward!” He sees Ling’s face peering at him in concern. “What happened to your arm?”

“Save your questions for later, you dumb idiot!” He grits his teeth.

The cell door clicks open and the rusty lock drops to the ground. 

Ed lets out a relieved breath and kneels before Ling. “Come on, let’s get these off you while Lan Fan distracts them.” One by one, the shackles fall loose. Ling sits back, rubbing his wrists. 

“Thank you, Ed.” Ling smiles gratefully at him. 

Ed smacks him upside the head, torn between intense relief and anger. “You dumbass! How could you let yourself get kidnapped like that in broad daylight?! Lan Fan almost killed me ‘cause of you!”

Ling whines, clutching his head. “Okay, I deserved that.”

“Damn right you do!”

“Did you break this because of me too?” Ling asks suddenly, gripping his limp automail arm and sounding guilty, eyebrows arched.

Ed gently shakes off his grip. “Nah,” he lies, or opts for a half-truth, “this was gonna happen sooner or later. Without a regular tune-up, even the best automail will break down.”

Ling hangs his head. “I’m sorry, Ed.”

Ed waves his hand, his gut twisting uncomfortably. “Don’t worry about it. Now come on, let’s get outta here already.” He turns and shuffles toward the exit. This cell really was tiny - even he had to bend over. “The stink of this place is seriously starting to make me light-headed.”

Outside, he pauses.

All the thugs are lying around the room, unconscious or immobilized.

Lan Fan has Reed pressed to the ground, her kunai just a hair’s width away from his neck. The man seems frozen on the spot, glaring at her and sweating bullets.

“Young Lord! What should I do with this _fiend_?” She asks through clenched teeth without looking up, breathing hard. Her mask has come off, her face is twisted in barely-contained fury.

Ed hears Ling come up behind him.

“Let him go,” he orders her calmly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Qù nǐ mā de: 'Fuck off'
> 
> fun fact: greed is one of my favourite fma characters so i couldn't resist bringing him in...and in this case i'm using fma03!greed who, if you remember, died in a very....unfortunate way that probably traumatized poor ed :(
> 
> i'm glad people are enjoying ed and lan fan's interactions!! in my honest onion i wish they'd interacted more in the canon-verse....oh well, that's why we have fanfiction!


	6. New Horizons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning for some brief underage drinking. it doesn’t lead to anything unpleasant tho dont worry

They all stare at Ling.

Even Lan Fan falters, her gaze flicking to him uncertainly.

Ed is the first one who speaks. “Are you out of your mind?! These guys kidnapped you!”

Ling walks past him and kneels at Reed’s side.“I am aware,” his tone is wry.

He looks over at Ed, then at Lan Fan. “But they aren’t so bad. I got to know them a little while I was being held here.”

He motions at Lan Fan and she retreats, schooling her expression into careful neutrality.

The man, Reed, sits up with a groan, rubs his neck. He eyes the three of them suspiciously.

Ling tilts his head to the side, looking at the man quizzically. “Had my friends brought you the money you asked for - what would you have done with it?”

The man grunts, scowling. “I already told you, didn’t I? Look at this place!” He waves an arm around. “It’s a dump! But these people - “ he points at the bodies of his henchmen. “They look up to me because I promised them a second chance!”

Ed glances around the room. He notices some of the children he’d seen earlier, cowering by the entrance and glaring at them, some of them trembling and trying not to cry.

“Society rejected us and we have no other place to go - we’re all either petty criminals or orphans here or both.”

“And you think fixing up this bar would help?” Ling asks him seriously, contemplating.

The man snorts. “It’d be a start, that’s for damn sure.”

Ed inhales. “So, let me get this straight. You needed money to open up a business so you resorted to kidnapping?”

The man glares at him. “And what - you have a better way? It’s not like anyone would hire us! No one gives a damn about lowlives like us! We gotta look out for each other ‘cause no one else will!”

Ling rises to his feet. “I’ve made up my mind.”

All three of them look at him. He smiles down at the man. “Remember when I said I wanted to make a deal with you?” He ignores Ed’s outraged ‘You what?!’ and continues: “I would like to extend the offer to you again.”

The man squints, still distrustful. “What kinda offer?”

Ling turns to Lan Fan. “Lan Fan, do you still have what I gave you this morning for safe-keeping?”

Ed notes curiously that he asks it in English and not in their language - clearly he wants them all to understand.

Lan Fan tenses and nods slowly. She reaches behind her and pulls something out of her black uniform. She hands it to him silently, eyes cast down, but the tight line of her mouth speaks volumes of her disapproval.

Ling inspects the object in his hand and then holds it up for them to see. He crouches before the man, eye level with him. “I’m afraid I’m a little short on cash at the moment. And my head is definitely not worth a _fifty thousand pounds_ ,” he chuckles in amusement and behind him Ed raises an eyebrow at that, “but I can give you this.”

They all stare at it. It looks to be an elaborate hair ornament. Ed had always been good at deconstructing objects in his head and he can tell that the base is made of solid gold, decorated with ornate flowers made of ruby and jade. It gleams brightly, looking so out of place in this drab, shitty dump.

Ling continues. “This imperial heirloom was passed down through family. I was originally going to give it to my _fiancé_ as a gift but it looks like you’ll be needing it more than her.” He chuckles, holds it toward the man who hasn’t taken his eyes off of it. “It’s worth a fortune in my country and I bet you can get an impressive sum for it here as well.”

Reed finally drags his eyes up to stare at the emperor. “And you’re just gonna hand it over to us like that? Something worth so much to you?”

Ling smiles brightly, eyes falling closed. “Yep! I do have conditions though.”

Reed tenses and Ed looks at him curiously. Around them, he can hear some people coming to or sitting up in confusion.

“Well? Spill ‘em already.”

Ling holds up two fingers. “One: you don’t come after me or my friends ever again. And two: no more criminal activity. No more stealing, no kidnapping, no hurting anybody else.” He opens one eye and Ed can see the threat in that look despite the light tone. “If I ever hear that you went back to your old ways, we will return. And rest assured, this time I won’t be so merciful.”

He straightens fluidly. 

The room is silent as everyone watches the scene unfold, waiting for what happens next.

Ed looks over at the bar owner. He’s grinning.

“Kid,” he says, standing up as well and facing Ling, “this is the easiest ‘Yes’ I’ve ever had to say in my entire life. You’ve got yourselves a deal.”

He holds out his hand and Ling happily shakes it, smiling back. 

“And a lifetime discount in my bar,” he adds as an afterthought. “You three will be treated as family from this moment on.”

Ed gawks at them, then shakes his head. This is definitely not at all how he was expecting the day to turn out.

Lan Fan is quiet. She’s moved closer to the emperor, guarding his back. She’s still giving everyone around them distrustful looks, as if expecting one of them to jump at Ling and stab him in the back.

Ling catches his eye and flashes a bright grin at him. Ed returns it with a helpless smile of his own.

This guy...sure was something else, he thinks.

***

“So, let me get this straight,” Al begins after a long moment of stunned silence, “You and Ling went to get breakfast and he was kidnapped when your back was turned. You and Lan Fan tracked him down and rescued him. Only for Ling to turn around and become chummy with his kidnappers and offer them a deal? And now you’re all friends?”

Ed snorts into his drink and nods. “Wouldn’t go so far as to call us ‘friends’ but yeah, in a nutshell.”

Al leans back. “Is there anything else I missed, brother?”

Ed thinks. “Not really. Well...I guess afterwards, I dragged Ling back to the cafe and made him apologize and pay for the food. And on the way back I left my coat at the dry cleaner’s. It got all messy while we were chasing Ling’s kidnappers.”

Al hides a smile behind his hand. “Did you throw it dramatically to the ground again, brother?”

Ed blushes in embarrassment. “Shut up,” he grumbles.

Al giggles.

“Ah, is this the brother? You two look awfully similar. Are you twins?” The bar owner - _Reed_ \- comes back and leans on the counter, grinning at them

Ed glares. “He’s my younger brother.”

Al falters a little when his eyes land on the man, taking in his appearance but he recovers quickly from his surprise and offers him a smile. “Hello, my name is Alphonse. Thank you for having us.”

Ed tries not to react. So, Al probably recognizes him too. He can see his brother’s grip tighten around his glass. 

The man laughs. “No problem, kid. Your friends did rescue my business, after all. We don’t have anything fancy set up yet but hopefully the next time you’re here, we’ll have more stuff to offer than ginger ale and cheap gin.”

He leaves for a moment, to speak to someone else and Al gives Ed a pained smile while his back is turned. “Is it just me or does he look exactly like…?”

“Right?”

Al sighs solemnly. “I never thought I’d see his face again, that’s for sure.”

Ed nods. “Me neither. And get this, Al, his name is _Reed_.”

Al snorts. Then shakes his head helplessly. “Sometimes I wonder how is this our life. Just when I think I’d seen it all…”

“You’ll get used to seeing familiar faces who won’t recognize you in this world. Trust me.”

Al squints. “I’m not sure if I want to.”

Ed pats him on the back in reassurance. “You’ll be fine. At least I’ll be here to prove to you that you’re not growing crazy.”

Al pouts. “That’s not very comforting, Ed.” He takes a thoughtful sip of his drink and nods toward the returning bar owner. “He seems nice, at least.”

“Just three hours ago he was Ling’s kidnapper, Al.” 

“Nice for a _kidnapper_ , then. And hey, I guess now Ling and I have something in common.”

Ed snorts, not wanting to think about the time Al was the one who got kidnapped by Greed, just as the topic of discussion waltzes back in. He grins at them widely. “So you two having fun? Gotta admit, it’s nice to have some customers for once.”

“Don’t you have other things you could be doing instead of bothering us?” Ed deadpans.

Al lets out a chastising “Brother!” but the man only laughs annoyingly. “Your pal was right. This one has spunk!”

Ed frowns, watching the man go back to pouring drinks. There are a few wanted posters decorating the wall behind him. One of them is with his face. _Gale Reed - wanted for petty thievery, destruction of property_.

“Pal? You mean Ling?”

“Yeah, yeah. His Majesty, the Emperor, yadda yadda.”

Ed sneaks a glance over his shoulder where he can see Ling chattering amicably with the other bar patrons, a drink in his hand. He can’t hear what he’s saying but it makes the group around him laugh, one man clapping a hand on Ling’s shoulder as if they’re old buddies. 

Lan Fan stands close by the wall, looking over Ling’s shoulder hawkishly. She has a drink too in her hand but she makes no show of actually drinking. At the moment, she seems to be engaged in a one-sided conversation with another woman - Ed recognizes her to be the female brawler she was fighting earlier. He squints and it dawns on him for the first time that she carries some resemblance to Martel from their world, at least appearance-wise. This one’s hair was longer, though, and she had a small scar over her left eye.

Ling looks up suddenly in his direction, meeting his gaze. He falters a little but then waves at Ed and flashes his typical bright smile. Some heads turn toward Ed too and then turn back to whisper conspiratorially amongst themselves. Ed smirks as Ling’s expression turns flustered at something they say and then his face is once again obscured by the crowd of people moving between them.

“Oh, yeah? Anything else he told you about me?” Ed wonders, turning back to the counter.

“He also warned me not to call you a kid or make any snide comments about your height,” the man remarks innocently.

Ed’s hand tightens around the glass. “Did he now,” he grits out.

Al, ever observant, must notice his expression because he clears his throat and tries to steer the conversation away from the sensitive subject. “A-anyway. Mr. Reed? I think this place has a lot of potential.”

“You think so?” The man grins, flashing his shark-like teeth at them. “Well, since you’re being so nice. Here you go - our best swill. On the house!” He grabs Alphonse’s empty glass and pours bubbling brown liquid into it.

Ed glares darkly at him. “Hey, just what do you think you’re doing?”

The man waves at him. “Come on, come on, don’t get jealous now. Here’s some for you too, champ.”

He quickly pours some into Ed’s glass before he can protest.

Ed slams his hand on the counter. “It’s not that, you idiot! My brother’s fourteen!”

Reed raises a dark eyebrow. “So?”

Ed splutters. “‘So?!’ He’s a minor, he can’t have alcohol!”

The man just starts laughing. “Wow. Are you really that uptight?” He turns towards Al who was turning pink. “Kid, are you gonna let you brother dictate your life for you like that? As if he’s your _mom_?”

Ed starts shaking in anger: “You shut your damn trap right now!”

“Brother!”

Ed looks over at him, his temper fizzling out slightly. Al sighs. “It’s not a big deal? Can’t I at least try some?”

Ed hesitates. “Al…”

“It’s not like you didn’t have some when you were my age. And why do you suddenly care about rules only when it comes to me?”

Ed can feel the bar owner’s self-satisfied smirk as he continues to stand there in silence, looking between the two. “He has a point, you know.”

“Shut up,” Ed grumbles. Then sighs, sitting down in defeat. “Fine, Al. If you wanna try it that badly, I’m not gonna stop you. Just don’t go overboard, ‘kay?”

“Really?” Al raises his eyebrows in surprise. He laughs. “I didn’t actually expect you to say yes.” Then he turns and starts chugging his drink.

It’s a tall glass and Ed’s eyes widen in alarm. “H-hey, not that fast!”

Even the bar owner looks apprehensive. “On second thought, maybe you _should_ listen to your brother.”

“ _Now_ you’re taking my side?!” Ed snaps at him.

Al puts down his glass, completely empty. Ed knows his brother’s expressions by heart and he can tell that he’s trying hard not to shudder in disgust. “Um, that was...that was…” There’s a flush spreading quickly through his face and down his neck, and his vision goes a little cross-eyed. 

“Al..?”

“Brother,” he slurs, swaying a little. He blinks at Ed. “‘m sleepy,” he mumbles and plonks his head on the counter.

“Al!” Ed grabs his brother’s shoulders, brushes his hair out of his eyes to get a look at his face. Al’s eyes are closed and he’s breathing evenly, fast asleep. 

Ed sighs. “You idiot,” he says softly.

“Well, looks like someone is a lightweight.” Reed snorts.

Ed glares. “This is your fault!”

The man shrugs, wiping a spill on the counter. “So what? Nothing’s gonna happen to the kid, sheesh. He’ll just have a raging hangover tomorrow and possibly regret his life choices. Happens to me all the time.”

Ed growls. “Next time you try offering my brother alcohol, you’re getting my shiny metal fist up your -”

“Noted!” He says cheerfully and gets out of there as fast as he can.

Ed watches his brother’s softly snoring form, feeling a twinge of concern. Their hotel was quite a ways from here and if he didn’t wake up soon he’d probably have to carry him back. 

He pulls Al’s jacket tighter around his brother’s shoulders and pats him on the back one more time. Ed swirls his own glass and then resolutely puts it down. There was no way he was drinking tonight, that’s for certain. Not when he had a passed out Alphonse to watch. It’s for the best, he decides. Besides, the drink smells and looks awful and probably tastes as such.

“Is this seat taken?” A new body slides into the seat next to his and Ed finds himself face to face with the emperor.

Ling sits with his body parallel to the bar counter, body turned completely toward Ed. If their makeshift chairs were any closer, it’d look as if Ed was sitting between Ling’s knees. Ed doesn’t know if it’s a good or a bad thing that he’s getting used to his personal space being invaded by the man.

“It is now,” Ed says cheekily, finally taking a good look at Ling. His black coat is nowhere to be seen and his shirt is open more than usual, exposing his collarbones and smooth muscular torso. His hair is more disheveled than normal, stray strands of hair falling out of his rat tail. There is a permanent flush to his cheeks and his smiles tonight are looking more and more lopsided.

“Are you drunk?” Ed bites back a snicker.

Ling laughs loudly and it’s answer enough. “I’m surprised you aren’t yourself! I have to admit I was wondering what the sight of you inebriated would look like.”

Ed snorts. “Well, you’ll have to keep wondering. Sorry to disappoint.”

Ling finally notices the shape on the other side of Ed and his eyes widen. “Is that...Alphonse?”

Ed sighs. “Yep. Idiot drank too much too quick and now he’s checked out.”

Ling’s eyebrows knit in concern. “If you need help with him…”

Ed shakes his head, waving off his concerns. “Nah, we’ll be fine. You should enjoy your night, you deserve it after pulling that off. Still don’t know if we should trust these guys but -”

“You approve?” Ling eyes him with a smile.

Ed nods. “I approve.”

Ling steals Ed’s drink and takes a sip, throat working, then places it down and faces him. He leans his cheek into his palm in a relaxed manner but there is something dissecting in the look he gives Ed, dark bangs falling over one eye.

“You know,” he starts casually, ”back there. When you first laid your eyes on _him_ -,” he dips his head in the direction of the oblivious bar owner; his former kidnapper, “you looked like you’d seen a ghost.”

Ed stiffens immediately, looking straight ahead at nowhere at all. _Damn him for noticing_.

Ed can feel Ling lean closer out of the corner of his eye, tilting his head to the side. “What was that all about? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you freeze up like that. Have you met him before?”

Ed takes a deep, shaky breath, collecting his thoughts. Maybe he does need a drink after all. Of all the people… He didn’t expect to talk about this with anyone - Al, maybe, but that’s it. The emperor’s shameless questions might’ve been allowed by his lack of sobriety. Or maybe he was only pretending in the first place, asking all these questions under the guise of being drunk. Maybe thinking that Ed would tell him everything, assuming he’d forget in the morning.

It was always hard to tell with Ling. For someone who seemed so carefree on most days, he was incredibly hard to read. Not for the first time, Ed wonders what his true intentions were.

He turns his head and faces Ling head-on. “There’s nothing to it. The guy just reminded me of someone I knew long ago. Someone I’d rather forget, if I’m being honest.” He holds his eye, refusing to look away. 

“Ah…” Ed can tell Ling wants to ask more but he refrains thankfully. 

Good. It’s Ed’s turn now.

“Speaking of what happened earlier. What the hell did you mean by ‘I’m a little short on cash’? Please tell me that was a joke.” 

His eyes narrow as Ling chokes on his drink, a concerned Lan Fan appearing at his side a second later. He waves her off, muttering something in his language which Ed assumes means ‘I’m fine’. 

He turns to Ed, eyes falling shut in an innocent smile. “I’m not sure what you mean. Whenever did you hear that, Ed?”

Ed growls and smacks the emperor on the head with his automail hand. It makes a worrying creak but Ed doesn’t care at the moment. “Don’t give me that you, dumbass! I heard you and so did everyone in the room who was awake! I can ask anyone else to confirm!”

Ling rubs his head but then smiles again. “Oh, really? Hm. Somehow, I doubt they would be so eager to support your claim, as you say.”

“Why, you…” 

Ed sighs then, releasing Ling’s shirt he’d been clutching in anger. “You know what, it doesn’t matter.” Ling blinks in surprise as Ed continues. “Just promise you can keep your end of the bargain and pay for my repairs as we agreed and we’re fine. If you’re tricking me and Al -“

“I would never!”

Ed looks up at Ling’s sharp voice. The dark-haired man actually looks angry. Ed’s eyes widen. “Please don’t insult me by assuming I would go back on my word. I have no intention of doing so. I will pay you and your brother every last bit that I promised.” 

Ling sighs. “I may not have all my fortune available to me at the moment but make no mistake, Ed. I will not let down your trust.”

“O-oh,” Ed replies a little weakly. Then clears his throat. “It’s not that I - I wasn’t saying that you would - Ugh..,” he struggles for words. He doesn’t understand why he feels embarrassed and a little guilty when he had valid concerns, but there it is. He frowns, trying to formulate his thoughts. Words have never been his forte, that was Al’s expertise. Beside him, Ling is silent. Ed feels a stab of shame. 

He sighs. “Look,” he starts. “I think you’re seriously annoying,” Ling sputters at that, “and clingy and a dumbass,” another shocked gasp from Ling,”and one hell of a moocher.” 

“Is there a ‘but’?” Ling asks a little depressedly.

“ _But_. You’re not a bad person.” Ed says quietly, frowning at his hands. “You can still prove me wrong, I guess. But I’m _really_ hoping that you won’t. Because…” he bites his lip in frustration. How does one do _words_?

“Because Al seems to like you and my brother has good judgement when it comes to people. It’s always been just the two of us against the world, y’know?” Ed clenches his hands into fists. 

“This world...to be honest, it’s never really felt like home to me. Sometimes it still feels like no matter what I do, I’ll always feel like a fish out of water! Like I’ll wake up one day and all of this will have been a dream,” Ed doesn’t know why it all suddenly comes spilling out. He’s not even had one drink and here he is admitting things that he never even admitted to Al, or even himself. What the hell was wrong with him.

Ed sighs, shaking his head. Ling had gone oddly still beside him. “This probably doesn’t even make any goddamn sense to you. Ugh! I don’t even know what I’m trying to say but - I guess...with how weird things have been ever since we met you guys...I’ve felt like everything is _normal_ for the first time.” 

Ed groans into his hands. “Man, I know I sound like a fuckin’ nutjob. Actually, do me a favor and forget everything I said in the last five minutes.” This is what he gets for trying to use _words_. Ends up saying a whole bunch of bullshit that’ll probably make Ling think he’s some kind of a _freak_ -

A sudden touch at the back of his head makes him freeze. Fingers gently running through his hair. Slowly, Ed looks up from his hands, heartbeat picking up.

Ling’s moved closer, watching him. He’s so close Ed can feel the heat radiating from his body. “I meant to tell you this earlier,” he says conspiratorially, “I like your hair like this.”

Ed’s eyes are wide. Ling’s _playing_ with his braid.

“Not that it wasn’t nice before, of course. It’s just...hm. It suits you is what I mean.”

Ed’s mouth works uselessly and then snaps shut. When his brain finally catches up with his mouth, he lets out a high-pitched squawk and swats Ling’s hand away. 

“What did I say about keeping your damn hands to yourself?! Geez! You that drunk?!” He shrieks, red in the face.

Ling lets go easily, laughing airily. “Guess so, haha.”

Ed still stews in embarrassment, refusing to look at him. “Seriously… Dont just go around touching other people’s hair without asking. Save that kinda stuff for your fiancé.”

Ling snorts and Ed narrows his eyes at him again. “What? Oh wait, was that a joke too earlier?”

Ling shakes his head. “No. I really do have a fiancé.”

Ed raises an eyebrow, still suspicious. “Oh, yeah? What’s she like?”

Ling hums and then shrugs. “I wouldn’t know. I only met her when I was five and she was an infant. But I am told she is a great beauty now.”

“Uh-huh.”

Ed thinks. “What about Lan Fan?”

Ling blinks at him. “What about her?”

“She didn’t seem too happy about you giving your fiancé’s gift to the guy over there.”

“I imagine few would be.” Ling smiles. “She helped me pick it, after all.”

“But you said it was passed down through your family.”

“It was. Among other treasures. It’s a little complicated,” Ling replies cryptically.

Ed sighs. “Well, either way. I’m guessing you broke some sacred tradition by giving it away, huh?” 

Ling grins and that confirms it. “What my family doesn’t know won’t hurt them. Besides, I can always find another gift,” he adds flippantly.

Ed chuckles. “Well. Amen to that. And congratulations on your engagement or whatever, I guess.”

Ling hums, a mischievous light in his eyes.

Ed narrows his eyes at that look. “What?”

“Nothing,” Ling says lightly, the corners of his mouth giving the impression that he was trying hard not to smile. He takes another sip of Ed’s drink as if to hide it.

Ed shakes his head, sighing. “Really getting tired of your cryptic bullshit answers, you know.”

Ling raises an eyebrow at that. “Oh? So you are the only one of us allowed to have secrets?”

Ed blinks. He has a point. “Well, shit. You got me there.”

His automail arm make a little whirring noise as he places it back on the counter and Ling’s gaze slides to it, his easy expression falling immediately. “How’s your arm?” He asks quietly, eyebrows knitting in a frown.

Ed looks down at it too and shrugs. “Better. I can actually move it somewhat again.”

Ling doesn’t look too comforted by that. “Tomorrow. We’ll get it fixed tomorrow, Ed. I promise.”

_We_

“Uh. Yeah. Sure.” He can’t help but feel a little taken aback by the determination in Ling’s voice. But then again, he must still feel guilt over Ed getting it banged up while he was fighting Reed’s goons. No matter how many times Ed had assured him that no, it _wasn’t_ his fault.

Ed can tell Ling wants to say more so he waits.

“Back in London. You mentioned that your prosthetics were made for you by a childhood friend. I take it we can’t see them about this issue?” 

Ed sucks in a breath and shakes his head, not looking at Ling. “No,” he says quietly. “We can’t.”

He can feel it in the air; the question Ling isn’t asking. He decides to answer it anyway.

“She’s gone. That’s why - that’s why Al and I needed to find a new person to fix them or whatever.” His voice doesn’t shake but he doesn’t succeed in keeping the pain out of his voice at the very mention of Winry. 

“I’m sorry.” Ling’s voice is utterly sincere and it only makes Ed feel worse. The _last_ thing he needs is someone feeling sorry for him.

He hears Al murmur something under his breath beside him.

“Save it,” Ed says maybe a little too harshly, standing up quickly and shoving his hands into his pockets.

He half-turns toward Ling, trying to adopt his easy attitude from before. “It’s getting late. I should take Al back to the hotel.”

Ling makes a motion to slide off his seat and follow but Ed stops him with a hand. “No, you guys don’t have to. You seem to be making friends with these guys,” he nods toward the crowded bar. “I don’t wanna take you away from them.”

Ling only gives him a helpless smile. “How many times must I repeat myself, Ed? I go where you go.”

***

“You better visit again, ya hear?!”

With some reluctance Reed and his lackeys let them go. In such a short span of time, they really seemed to have taken a shine to their little group. Ed thinks that maybe Al isn’t the only one who’s good at reading people.

Speaking of Al.

His brother flits in and out of consciousness as Ed carries him on his back. 

It’s very late and the streets are nearly empty aside from a few people loitering about. 

Ahead of them, Ling slows down and turns as Ed’s automail makes another one of its annoying sounds. This time it’s his leg, though. “Are you sure you should be carrying your brother in your condition? Lan Fan or I can help, you know.”

Ed grunts, tightening his hold under Al’s legs. “Oh, quit your worryin’. I’m fine, okay? You’re acting like I’m dying or something…” He grumbles.

Ling is still looking at him with that damn concerned expression.

“Stop looking at me like that! I’m okay, I swear! I’m stronger than I look and Al isn’t that heavy. Sheesh.”

Ling blinks and nods slowly. “If you’re sure, Ed. Let me know if you change your mind.” He tears his gaze away from his face and resumes walking. Quite steadily too, for supposedly a drunk person.

Al murmurs something into his shoulder and snorts.

“Al?” Ed whispers.

“He called you...‘Ed’ just now. That’s nice… Ling’s nice, brother.” He trails off without explanation, eyelashes fluttering but never actually opening. He sighs softly and continues dozing with his head on Ed’s shoulder.

Ed gives his brother a confused glance and hurries after Ling.

It is only later, when he’s lying on the couch in their hotel room about to fall asleep, does he realize what Al had meant.

“Huh,” he says quietly into the darkness of the room. 

He hadn’t even noticed.

***

It’s still early morning when they set out in search of the engineer.

Following the address that was scribbled on the note, they end up on the outskirts of the city. The fields here are very green, occupied by farm houses scattered throughout. The smell of manure, fresh-cut grass, the bleating of sheep is all very familiar. If Ed squints, he can almost pretend he’s back in Resembool. Except none of the faces he sees are those that he recognizes. The thought fills him with a strange sense of dread and nostalgia.

Al had been quiet all morning. He’d woken up groaning in discomfort, swearing off alcohol forever. Thankfully, he hasn’t drank enough last night to make himself really sick but he did earn himself a raging headache. Ed was, nevertheless, relieved that his brother didn’t need to use the waste bucket he’d stolen from a janitor’s closet in case Al’s stomach decided to puke up last night’s mistakes. He’d woken up early and had prepared a glass of water and some aspirin which Al had accepted gratefully.

Ling and Lan Fan had both been absent in the morning but showed up at their window as Ed was busy with his morning shave. He almost nicked himself with the razor when he’d heard Ling’s sudden “Good Morning, Elric brothers!” and saw his familiar silhouette in the reflection of the bathroom mirror.

Ed didn’t know where they’d been but Ling wasn’t whining for breakfast for once so Ed took it as a good sign.

The only stop they’d made on their way was to pick up Ed’s coat from cleaning, and then they were off to search for this Dominic Desoutter.

The humble house that they stop in front of isn’t exactly what Ed expects. For one, it’s not a farmhouse like its neighbours. It looks old but not unwelcome. 

They filter past the fenced gate and Ed knocks loudly on the front door. They wait. When nothing happens, Ed knocks again. “Hey! Open up, we just wanna talk!”

Finally, they hear footsteps padding toward the front door, the lock turning, and the door finally swings open.

A large man stands before them, a permanent scowl etched on his face. “What’d you want?” He grunts.

Ed blinks then rolls up his sleeve, exposing his automail. “We were hoping you could take a look at my prosthetics and fix - hey, wait!”

The door slams shut in their faces before they can react.

“Maybe it’s a bad time?” Ling asks with a nervous smile, gaze flicking from side to side.

“Um…This is the right place, right brother?” Al asks. He’d winced when the door closed, probably aggravating his pounding headache.

“It is, dammit! It’s gotta be.” Ed glares at the door, then knocks on it again. Harder, and raises his voice. “Come on, open up! We ain’t leaving until you let us in! So just open the damn door already!” 

He spends maybe a full minute banging on the door before it flies open again.

“Look, we travelled all this way to see you so the least you could is hear us ou-“

“Hello there!”

It’s not the man from before who stands there.

It’s a girl around his age, with warm brown eyes and dark skin. She smiles at them, blinking curiously at Ed’s arm and a sense of vertigo overcomes him again, knocking the breath out of him.

As he takes in her appearance, it’s not the prosthetic arm that he notices first but her familiar face, the ghost of a childhood memory.

She looks just like Paninya.

He hears Al gasp beside him too.

They stand there in silence, gaping at each other until Ed feels Ling’s elbow in his side and finally snaps out of it.

“H-Hey! I’m Edward Elric, this is Ling Yao, Lan Fan, and my brother Alphonse.” He scrambles to collect himself, pointing at each individual by name. “We were hopin’ to have Mr. Desoutter take a look at my arm and leg? We’re willing to pay, of course! And look - I have a letter of recommendation from his brother.” He holds it up for her to see and she leans in, with a questioning look.

“Hmm, well Mr. Dominic is retired so he doesn’t accept patients anymore but I could show this to him, see what he has to say. Please come in!” She grins brightly and holds the door open for them.

They all file in with various degrees of relief. To have travelled all this way just to see one man… Ed sure hopes it’ll be worth it.

He hands her the letter and she nods with a smile and turns to walk upstairs. She pauses on the top stair and spins around. 

“Oh! Almost forgot to introduce myself! My name is Priyanka.”

“It’s a pleasure,” Ling says earnestly.

“Nice to meet you, Priyanka. Thanks for letting us in!” Al sounds a little hesitant at first but no less earnest. Ed had to give it to him for recovering quickly from his surprise.

On his part, Ed is still experiencing a head-tilting déjà vu so he can only nod and offer a shaky smile.

While she’s gone, Al turns to Ed with a meaningful glance. “Brother, you alright? You’ve gone pale.”

Ed feels Ling’s stare but doesn’t acknowledge it. He squeezes his eyes shut, take a deep breath, and then smiles at his brother. “I’m fine, Al. Really. Just wanna get this over with.”

Al hesitates, then lowers his voice, switching to German. “You’re thinking it too, aren’t you?”

Ed nods, but before he can say anything, Priyanka reappears. 

“Good news!” She exclaims, eyes shining brightly. Mr. Dominic will see you!” She nods at Ed and they all let out a collective sigh of relief.

He turns toward the others. “Ok, I’ll take it from here. You guys should probably stay here. It might take a while, though.”

They all speak at once. 

Al says, chagrined: “Are you sure you’ll be okay alone, Ed?”

Lan Fan gives him a flat look and a: “How long do you mean exactly?”

Ling raises an eyebrow. “Shouldn’t I come along too? Seeing as how I’ll be paying for the gentleman’s services.” He says wryly.

Ed gives the three of them helpless smiles and then replies in order. “Yes, Al, your big brother is an adult. I can handle myself. Can’t give you an exact estimate, Lan Fan. That depends on the mechanic but probably at least six hours. Ling - actually, you have a point. Let’s go.”

Ling smirks and follows Ed as he turns to make his way upstairs.

“First door on the left!” Priyanka calls after them.

“Got it!” Ed calls back gratefully.

He hears her turn to his brother and Lan Fan. “Why don’t you two make yourselves comfortable. Looks like you might be here for a while.”

“Scared?” Ling whispers cheekily in his ear as they reach the top of the stairs.

Ed snorts. “No way. This is nothing I haven’t done before.”

He pushes the door open.

“Just so we’re clear. I ain’t doing this out of the kindness of my heart. So don’t get any ideas,” a gruff voice greets them before they’re even inside the room.

“You got it!” Ed declares happily only to be responded to with another grunt as the man finally turns in his seat to glare at them.

Ed notices the crumpled letter on his desk. Well, it’s not like they’ll be needing it again he supposes.

The man raises an eyebrow as his eyes land on Ling, directs his scowl toward him. “And who’s this? The note said nothing about two patients.”

“Oh he’s not a patient. I am,” Ed points at himself.

“I’m here to pay for Ed’s check-up and for any repairs. As his employer,” he adds breezily. Ed side-eyes him.

The man, Dominic, glares at the two of them and crosses his arms. “Well, good! Because my time is valuable and my prices won’t be cheap.”

Ed grins sharply. “Well, let’s hear it, old man.”


	7. Lullaby

“Will this do?”

Dominic lets out an appreciative grunt at the money inside Ling’s envelope and nods, accepting it. He then gives both of them a suspicious look. “Don’t know where you got all this from but I won’t ask.”

“Well, you see - I’m actually the Empe - mmhm!”

Ed slaps his hand over Ling’s mouth quickly. “Impressive reputation you have there, Mr. Desoutter! We can’t wait to work with you.” Ed offers a wide forced grin, then directs it at the taller man beside him. Ed sees a flash of sheepish understanding in Ling’s eyes and lets his hand fall to his side.

Ed resists the urge to chastise Ling right there and then. But seriously, he should’ve learned from the last incident not to flaunt his wealth and status to everyone like that.

Dominic doesn’t seem to buy any of it. Luckily, he also doesn’t seem to _care_. He just waves a hand and makes an impatient sound. “Let’s get this over with already, boy.” He glances around his room with a frown. 

He stands up then and walks past them, yelling at the top of his lungs when he sticks his head out the door. “Priyanka! Bring me my tools, would you!”

Ed hears a cheery: “Right away!”

The large man walks back into the room, pulling out a pair of glasses from a drawer and gesturing toward an empty table by the wall. “I haven’t treated patients in years so give me some time to set up. You, blond one. You can get undressed in the meantime. Shirt off and pants too. You have a metal leg too, don’t you?”

Ed is caught off-guard. “Uh, yeah, I do. You can tell?”

Dominic glares at him over his shoulder, glasses sliding down the bridge of his nose. “Of course, I can. You ain’t the first amputee I’ve had to deal with, dimwit.”

Ed lets out an outraged stammer but the man turns his eyes to Ling beside him. “You, tall one, get out. I don’t need an audience breathing down my neck.”

Ling’s delicate eyebrows crease in a frown. “But…”

“It’s fine, Ling,” Ed tells him, fingers undoing the buttons of his jacket. “Just wait for me downstairs with the others, would you? And give another dose of painkillers to Al. They’re in my coat pocket.” He hands his coat to Ling with a nod, who takes it without resistance.

He still looks hesitant, though. “If you’re sure…”

Ed gives him another reassuring nod. “I am. See you in a bit.”

Ling searches his face and then nods, smiles, and turns on his heel. “Don’t die!” He calls brightly. And then he’s gone.

Ed sighs and continues undressing.

Priyanka arrives shortly, hefting a giant box of tools over her hip with a smile. Using only one hand. It’s impressive to say the least.

Ed lets out an embarrassed squawk when she walks in casually while he’s naked above waist, in the process of pulling his right leg out of his trousers.

“Here you go, Mr. Dominic!”

Dominic gives an appreciative grunt while Ed topples over, trying to cover himself. 

“Best of luck, Mr. Elric!” She says cheerfully as she leaves without even sparing him a glance.

Ed sighs in relief and then jumps at Dominic’s booming voice.

“The hell are you still doing on the floor, boy! Get your arse over here or stop wasting my time!”

“Yessir!” Ed scrambles to his feet and then dumps his body on the operating table the man was standing over.

A tense silence overtakes the room as the man begins examining his arm. Ed trains his gaze on the flaky white ceiling but watches him out of the corner of his eye.

Dominic doesn’t act surprised or amazed as he runs his hands over the automail but Ed thinks he sees a spark of appreciation in his dark eyes that wasn’t there before.

“So. How is it, doc?”

The man bends his arm at the elbow a few times, listening to the creaks and whirrs. He grunts in annoyance. “Some screws have come loose. The steel plating does a good job of protecting the inner wiring but this one got banged up out of shape and it keeps rubbing against these ones, jamming the movement. You haven’t gone in for regular oiling either, have you?”

Ed winces. “Haven’t really had the time…”

“Idiot boy! If you don’t do proper maintenance, you’ll wear down this beautiful machinery in no time. The talent of the one who made this is wasted on an ignorant fool like you!”

Ed clenches his teeth in anger. “Hey, watch it, old man! We paid you to fix my prosthetics, not insult my mechanic!“

“I wasn’t insulting your mechanic, idiot. I was insulting _you_.”

Ed falters. “Well, that’s… _Still_! Are you always this rude to your patients?!”

“Are you always this much of an annoying pest to all your engineers?”

Ed growls, gritting his teeth. _This damn old guy_ … “Whatever, just do what you promised and fix it.”

The man grunts, reaching for a screwdriver. “I don’t need to be told to do my job by the likes of _you_.”

Ed is just about to snap ‘What’s that supposed to mean, you old fart?!’ when the door opens and Priyanka peeks in. “Sorry to interrupt.”

She's carrying a tray with water and cookies. She sets it down on the closest available surface, within Ed’s reach. “This is for you in case you get hungry or thirsty. You’ll be here for a while, after all.” She flashes a warm smile at Ed who turns red in embarrassment, still only in his underwear.

“T-thanks,” he stammers out.

“Of course! Call me if you need anything else.” She says to the both of them and leaves once again, softly closing the door behind her.

Dominic continues to work on his arm, quiet this time and Ed sighs internally. He can’t even close his eyes and pretend it’s Winry as the man’s touch and entire presence is wholly different from hers. His big hand rests on Ed’s forearm, the other on his shoulder plate. He makes occasional grunts, whether in concentration or annoyance. His breath carries a hint of tobacco too, which is hard to ignore.

Ed closes his eyes and dozes.

Downstairs, he can hear soft laughter but doesn’t recognize whose. 

He doesn’t know how much time passes. His mind wanders in and out of half-sleep. If Winry were here, she might’ve tried hitting him over the head with her wrench to keep him awake. He misses her. 

Ed breathes out shakily and recites the different elements of the periodic table in his head to stop himself from following down that painful train of thoughts. When he runs out of them, he switches to physics formulas.

Dominic’s tools come and go and Ed’s gotten good at blocking out the sound of them.

There’s not much pain; or if there is Ed doesn’t notice it. For someone as forceful and intimidating, the old guy has a surprisingly soft touch. Treating Ed’s arm as if it was something precious. 

Finally, he puts down his current tool and wipes the sweat off his forehead. He grabs a nearby towel and wipes his oily hands as well. “Get up, boy. It’s time for a break.” 

Ed sits up, careful to keep his automail arm out of the way, and Dominic slides the tray Priyanka had brought toward him.

Ed’s eyes light up. “Well, don’t mind if I do!” He digs in. “So, how’s the progress, doc?” He asks with his mouth full.

The old man eyes him warily. “The arm’s almost done. Need another hour or so to finish the calibrations.” His hard gaze slides to Ed’s leg. “Your leg needs work too so don’t expect to be out of here until evening at the earliest.”

Ed nods, chewing thoughtfully. 

“You been wearing these since you were a kid, weren’t you?”

Ed turns to him, swallowing, gives him a curious look. “You can tell?”

The man looks to be working on his tools, his back to Ed. “Well, it’d explain why you’re so short for one.” Ed lets out an undignified squawk, choking on his cookie. He ignores it. 

“You have the voice of an adult but you’re small. And looking at your brother, I can tell it’s not hereditary.” He puts down his tools then. “Priyanka’s had her prosthetics since childhood too but hers are lighter so they didn’t impede her growth as much.” He turns and frowns at Ed’s automail. “I’d tell you to switch those to something not as bulky as metal if you wanted to grow a few inches but I reckon it’s already too late for you.” 

“Thanks,” Ed grumbles, losing his appetite. “Like I’d listen to you anyway.”

For the first time, he seems something like a hint of a smile on the old man’s face. He huffs what may or may not be a laugh and gestures over. “Alright, enough chit-chat. Let’s take a look at your leg now, boy.”

Some odd hours later, Ed’s stomach rumbles. 

He’s lying on his stomach with his cheek pressed to the cold surface of the table while the man finishes working on his leg. He can hear whirrs and clicks as automail parts slide into the right places. Thankfully, his leg wasn’t nearly as beat up as his arm and only needed slight adjustments. And oiling, of course.

“All done. Sit up.”

Ed does as told, too tired and hungry to complain. Dominic runs him through a series of tests and exercises, trying out the newly reinforced automail. He also shows him various stretches to do every morning and night to avoid soreness in his joints. It’s nothing Ed hadn’t seen or heard already so he just nods along, fully knowing he’ll be too lazy to do it every day as the man instructs him.

“And for the love of the Almighty, don’t neglect your regular maintenance and check-ups like an imbecile or it’s your funeral! I know with the ones you have, it’ll be pricey no matter where you go but that fella with you seems to be good on money.”

Ed looks at him. “Can I come to you next time too?”

The man glares and gives him a displeased grunt. “Why’d you think I’d wanna deal with a punk like you again? Marcel’s letter only mentioned I have to see you once and no more bugging me after that for favors.”

Ed wilts. “Are you serious?! Look, we can pay you!”

Scowling, Dominic removes his glasses and starts packing his tools away. “I’m getting too old for this, boy.” And then he sighs wearily. “I suppose…” he begins in a resigned tone, “if you can’t find a young capable engineer in a year’s time, you can come back here.” 

He meets Ed’s stare and glowers. “I guess I’ll have to take you in that case. If I’m still around.”

Ed gives him a flat look. “Try not to drop dead by then, old man.”

“No promises.” The man grunts. He continues clearing the mess on the table as he speaks. “How’s that feel?”

Ed looks down at his arm and flexes his fingers, then clenches them into a fist. He grins. “Feels like new.”

The man hums approvingly. “Of course it does. Who the hell do you think I am? A bloody amateur?” 

He gestures at the door. “Now, get out. I did my part, now this old man needs a rest.”

Ed slides off the table, testing out his newly calibrated leg. It feels great and Ed can’t stop smiling. He picks up his clothes, dressing quickly as he goes. “You got it. I’ll see you later, pops.”

He feels the old man’s glare on his back as he leaves the room, closing the door behind him.

***

Outside, the sky is already turning pink. The sun’s rays filter through the windows, leaving shadows on the stairwell as Ed makes his way down. He really has been here all day, hasn’t he.

He hears conversations going on, multiple voices speaking at once as he finishes fastening the last button on his shirt. 

He follows the voices and stops at the entrance to the kitchen. Conversation stops as three heads turn toward him. There is a fourth person whom Ed instantly recognizes to be Paninya - no, _Priyanka_ \- but she’s standing at the stove with her back to him, rapidly stirring something bubbling in a pot.

“Well, well, look who it is.” Ling is the first one to speak up, greeting him with a relaxed smile. His black coat was draped across the back of his chair.

“I’m back.” Ed announces with a smile, striking a heroic pose and saluting.

“Hey Ed.” Al grins at him wide, his own coat and jacket missing and his sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

Lan Fan doesn’t say anything but nods in acknowledgement. Ed would like to think he’s gotten better at reading her expressions and he thinks she looks content. Maybe even a little happy to see him too. But that could be Ed’s wishful thinking.

Priyanka looks over her shoulder and smiles at him, never slowing her furious stirring.

“So what have you guys been up to while I was gone?” Ed walks to the closest chair and plops down, straddling it backwards.

“Nothing much,” Ling says casually.

“We’ve just been helping Priyanka with the dinner,” Al nods at a bushel of apples in a crate at his feet.

“More like they’ve been sitting aroun’ twiddling their thumbs until I decided to put them to work.” Priyanka snorts.

Ed glances at the three of them and notices they were each holding a small paring knife.

“Wait. Even _you_ , Ling?” He can’t hide his amusement.

Ling nods happily. “Of course. I’ve never done something like this before so it’s a little exciting, you know?”

That’s right. His Majesty probably had servants cooking for him his entire life.

Ling smiles conspiratorially. “The three of us were just about to have a competition. Who can peel the most apples. The winner doesn’t have to do the dishes. Care to join?” He tosses one apple at Ed, who catches it easily.

“Color me interested.” He grins and joins them at the table.

***

Lan Fan wins.

She’s peeled a dozen apples in just under five minutes, beating Ling by two.

“Good job, Lan Fan!” Al smiles brightly at her, washing his hands at the sink.

“Very impressive,” Priyanka nods with wonder in her voice, picking up the clean apples from her pile.

Ed sulks.

Ling smirks at him, cheek in hand. “What’s that look for, Ed? Don’t tell me you’re a sore loser.”

Ed crosses his arms and glares. “Easy for you to say, you’re not in the last place.”  
He scowls at his pathetic pile of four apples.

“Well, maybe you should’ve asked Mr. Dominic to install an upgrade in your hand that’d allow you to peel faster.”

“That's not practical. Like at all. And you’d have to pay for it, genius.”

Ling shrugs. “I wouldn’t mind. If it meant I wouldn’t have to see my friend so down in the dumps.”

Ed scoffs, torn between feeling touched and ridiculed. It’s hard to tell if Ling is being sincere or just making fun of him. “Whatever. I’m just stiff from lying on the table motionless for hours,” he grumbles.

“It’s ok, brother. There’s always next time.” Al’s words are reassuring on the surface as he pats him gently on the shoulder. But Ed’s known him for too long and catches that hidden smirk in his tone.

“Alright, I don’t need _two_ smartasses giving me shit!”

His brother and Ling exchange a glance and snicker. Lan Fan rolls her eyes, standing up to help Priyanka carry the crate of apples to the sink.

“Ugh, you guys are the worst!” He slams his fist down on the table, making it rattle a little. There’s no heat in his words, however. 

The last of the sunset gives everything in the room a soft golden glow and Ed realizes that he’s missed this. Whatever _this_ is. He lets himself relax and indulge in the sound of his brother’s laughter, even if it’s at _his_ expense.

His contentment vanishes, however, when Dominic comes stomping into the kitchen the next moment and tugs on his ear, hard, and gives him an earful about causing a ruckus in his house.

***

“Well, aren’t you going to give it a try?”

Ed blinks at Priyanka’s question and locks gazes with Al at his right. His brother has the same wistful expression and gives him a shaky smile in return.

Ed looks at the four people around the table and laughs sheepishly. “Uh, yeah we are! Sorry it’s just…” 

“We haven’t had a proper apple pie since our childhood so it brings a lot of memories. It smells delicious though, Priyanka!” Al finishes for him confidently.

“It tastes delicious too!” Ling, in his usual manner, speaks with his mouth full, eyes shut in enjoyment.

Lan Fan nods in agreement and Priyanka beams. “Thank you all. I’m glad you’re enjoying it! It’s a special occasion, after all. It’s not often that we get visitors.”

“I wonder _why_ that could be,” Ed mumbles to himself, throwing a glance over at Dominic. Al kicks him under the table and _okay_ , he probably deserved that. 

Dominic huffs and stands up. “It’s getting too crowded in here, if you ask me.”

He places his empty plate in the sink and pats Priyanka affectionately on the head as he passes by her chair. “I’ll be in my workshop if you need me,” he says gruffly and turns to go.

Priyanka smiles after him. “Call if you need anything!”

She gets only a grunt of acknowledgement and then the man is gone.

“He’s kind of a dickhead, isn’t he?” Ed asks bluntly.

Ling chokes a little but tries to cover it up with a cough.

Al lets out a scandalized: “Brother!”

Priyanka just laughs, covering her mouth, thankfully not offended. “He’s more likeable once you get to know him, trust me.”

Ed raises an eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”

Priyanka nods, picking at her slice of pie thoughtfully. She smiles wistfully, looking at her prosthetic arm. “Mr. Dominic can seem harsh and cold but he has a good heart. When I was very little, my parents and I were in a train accident. Both of them died but I survived, albeit without my legs and arm.”

She looks at their surprised faces with a smile. “It was Mr. Dominic who built these prosthetics for me and took me in, giving me another chance.” She laughs. “Well. He’ll say that he took me in as his assistant but we both know the truth.”

“He adopted you,” Ed realized, sounding impressed.

“That’s amazing,” Al says, wide-eyed, “that’s very kind of him.”

Even Ling pauses eating, a thoughtful look on his face. “Well, who would’ve thought. Appearances really are deceiving, aren’t they?” He turns toward Ed.

Ed looks away, feeling weirdly out of sorts.

Priyanka’s story has reminded him that Paninya from his world had told them a similar tale. He’d forgotten Paninya’s adopted father’s name but now that he thinks about it… Could it have been _Dominic_ as well?

“Oh!” Al’s voice catches in his throat and Ed looks over instantly. 

His eyes were wide, shiny and a little clouded with memory. He chews slowly, as if to savor the sensation.

“Do you like it? This is actually my first time making a pie.” 

Al gapes at her. “No way!”

“You truly have a gift, then,” Ling chimes in. 

Priyanka laughs. “Honestly? I was never much of a cook but I had to pick it up because Mr. Dominic is just awful at it, and his previous cook had quit.” She shrugs, placing another slice of pie in Al’s plate. “I just really wanted to impress you guys.”

“It worked.” Lan Fan tells her with a smile, speaking for the first time since they’d sat down to eat.

“Well, I have gotta try it now.” Ed picks up his own fork.

“Do it, Ed! While it’s still hot.” Al nods at him encouragingly, already demolishing his second slice.

Ed’s eyes close involuntarily as he chews, and when he opens them they’re misty. It’s no Winry’s pie but it’s a close second, if nothing else - definitely the best thing he’s had since arriving in this stupid world. Sure, Miss Gracia had made some cakes for him and Alfons back when they were living together but it still didn’t quite measure up to this. 

Maybe it wasn’t just the pie; maybe it’s the fact that he didn’t feel quite so alone for the first time.

He sniffles, looking around at the smiling faces around him, and blinks unbidden tears away. Their faces are lit up in an orange glow, giving them an otherworldly quality. He suddenly thinks of his dream on the train from weeks ago. It still hurts to think about _them_ , his family, in another world, knowing he’ll never see them again.

But maybe, just maybe - he thinks as he turns toward Al and sees a look of understanding - it won’t have to hurt forever. 

Al sees something on his face that makes tears spring to his own eyes and he rubs them away with an embarrassed laugh.

“Well, he _is_ speechless. I’d consider that a victory,” Ling tells Priyanka with a smug smile.

Ed thinks his bangs do a good job of hiding his red-rimmed eyes but still. If they notice them, no one comments and he can’t help but feel grateful.

“It’s one of the best damn things I’ve ever tried,” Ed says a little hoarsely.

Priyanka blinks and then her face splits into the widest smile he’d seen so far. “I’ll be sure to make more the next time you guys visit then! Have another slice, Edward.”

Ed nods mutely and accepts it. He feels Al’s hand on his shoulder and meets his brother’s warm, reassuring gaze. He knows, he can probably see right through Ed.

“May I have another one as well?” Ling asks eagerly, holding up his own plate.

Priyanka nods with a laugh and obliges.

“Isn’t that your fourth one already, Ling? Sheesh, leave some for others, you greedy bastard!” Ed shoots him a flat look, falling back into his normal tone.

Ling pouts at him but there is a relieved slump to his shoulders. “I can’t help it! It tastes so heavenly, Ed! It’s just asking me to take another bite.”

Ed rolls his eyes. “No one’s asking you to eat more other than your own damn stomach. Take some responsibility!”

“What does that word mean again?” He asks too innocently, blinking owlishly.

They all laugh. Ed can see the corner of Ling’s mouth twitching up in a smile and Ed resists cracking one of his own.

Yeah, he could get used to this.

***

Despite her earlier victory, Lan Fan ends up helping with the dishes anyway.

Ling had stepped out of the kitchen to use the john, or so he’d claimed. Ed not so secretly thinks he’s just using that as an excuse to avoid doing more chores. It wouldn’t surprise him. The spoiled rich bastard.

Ed and Al had both offered to help Priyanka with cleaning up as well but she’d assured them it was fine. That she and Lan Fan could handle it on their own. Ed glances at them - Priyanka washing the dishes and Lan Fan drying them beside her with a towel. It was surprising to see Lan Fan chatting so much with someone who wasn’t her Emperor but Ed is glad. Maybe she hadn’t spoken to another girl in a long time or maybe they’d found a common ground while he was upstairs getting fixed. Either way, he can’t help but be happy for her.

“Today was nice, wasn’t it, Ed?” Al asks him softly, beside him.

“Yeah.” Ed looks up as a cool breeze ruffles his hair. He leans on the railing of the balcony with a content sigh. The kitchen connected to this porch and they’d decided to open the doors as the temperature inside the house was getting too warm from all their cooking. 

He breathes in the night air, taking it all in. The chirping of crickets, the stars twinkling above them, it was all so very peaceful in this lonely countryside. “Doesn’t this remind you of Resembool?”

Al hides a smile. “I was just thinking the same thing,” he confesses quietly.

“Gotta say I’m surprised,” Ed breathes out, “I thought we’d take off right away as soon as the old man was finished with me.”

“I’d thought the same.” Al nods. “But Priyanka offered us to stay the night and Ling decided it was a good idea.”

“Ling did?”

“Yep. He said you should get a chance to rest and recuperate after your appointment.” He smiles warmly at Ed. “He seemed really worried about you, brother.”

Ed tries to cover up his surprise with a snort. “Probably ‘cause he needs us for his mission. We’re his ‘investments’ after all - as he’d called us himself.”

Al stares. “You don’t really believe he meant that, do you?”

Ed says nothing. Just continues to watch the sky with a serious expression. Even the constellations in this world were the same. Could they be the same stars?

After a while, Al sighs. “I’ve been thinking… Should we tell Ling about where we’re really from?”

Ed’s head snaps toward him, eyes wide. “What?! Why the hell would you wanna do that, Al?”

Al shrugs, raising his head to look at the stars too with a smile. “I don’t know. I just thought it might be nice to share our story with someone else.”

Ed watches him for a moment and then snorts. “There’s no need, Al. Besides, would he even believe us if we tried?”

“You’ve told Alfons, haven’t you?” Al says quietly.

Ed freezes. He feels his brother’s sympathetic gaze on him and forces his taut frame to relax. “So what if I did? It’s not like he believed me. Not at first anyway.” He sighs. “At least he was nice about it, I guess.”

“You don’t talk about him much, brother. Wasn’t he your closest friend in this world?” 

Ed grits his teeth. “What’s there to talk about, Al? He’s _gone_.” 

Al sighs. His voice is extremely gentle when he speaks again. “You’ve got to stop blaming yourself for what happened, eventually.”

Ed huffs, his throat tight. “Easy for you to say. I had to watch my brother die twice in front of me.” His laughs shakily, eyes misting over. “Or is it three times now?”

“Ed…”

The stars are all blending into another in his blurry vision. “You know what the last thing he said to me was, Al?” He starts quietly, gripping the railing with white knuckles. “‘ _We’re real, Edward. We aren’t just part of your dreams_.’” 

He laughs, self-deprecating. “I really am one big idiot, aren’t I? I didn’t even make an effort to get to know him as a real person. I only ever saw him as a mirror image of you. And I think a part of me might’ve even resented him for having your face but not _being_ you. That’s pretty awful of me, isn’t it?” The confession feels like a heavy weight between them.

Al watches him, his expression agonized. His mouth opens and closes a few times, unsure what to say.

Ed keeps looking at the sky, speaking more to himself than Al. He can feel a twisted smile of self-loathing on his face. “He took me in, listened to my crazy stories and in the end he sacrificed himself for me. And what’d I ever do for him? Nothing, Al,” he says quietly. “ _Nothing_.”

Al seems to snap out of his haze and rubs his eyes furiously. “So what?! You think sitting here and feeling sorry for yourself will make things better?! It won’t change the past, Ed!”

Ed is taken aback by the outburst but then snaps back. “Don’t you think I know that?!”

“You really are a big fat idiot if you think Alfons would want you to hate yourself and feel guilty over what happened! The least you could do is actually take his words to heart instead of beating up on yourself and being useless!”

“What the hell’s that supposed to mean?!”

“You still don’t think this world or its people are _real_ , Ed!”

Ed stops breathing. 

Al continues, a little calmer but no less emotional. “I’m doing everything to accept this world, brother, but you are not. You’re still stuck in the past! Even if you hate it, _this_ is our home now and we’re not going back, whether you like it or not!”

Ed’s grip on the railing goes slack.

Al shakes his head. “You don’t talk to other passengers whenever we travel, you don’t build connections, you don’t even try to get to know anyone!” He adds quietly, a little more gently. “You didn’t try with Alfons so you feel guilty, but you’re continuing to do the same thing and pushing everyone else away.”

His brother steps closer, placing his hands on Ed’s still shoulders. He looks him deeply in the eyes, pleadingly. “Can you please try? Try to accept this world? For me? For Alfons? For _them_?”

Ed is distantly aware he’s started shaking. His eyes sting and he can’t even summon the strength to be annoyed that he has to tilt his head up to look at his brother’s face. “Ok,” he says quietly, voice cracking. “Ok, I promise. I’ll try.”

Al smiles in relief, his own tears slipping free as he brings in Ed for a hug. “Thanks, brother. They’d want us to be happy, you know.” He whispers. 

Ed nods, hugging back fiercely, throat too tight to speak.

“You keep denying yourself happiness and making friends because you feel guilty. But you can’t live like that, Ed! You’ve gotta make this world your home too. You’d said so yourself!” He pulls back, looking at Ed with those damn understanding eyes that see through him always. “You’ve gotta find the people who’ll make this place a home for you. People other than me.”

“I don’t know if I can,” Ed admits hoarsely.

“Of course you can. Your heart is big enough to have a place for both worlds, you know.”

Ed’s throat makes a sound - an ugly mix of a laugh and a sob, as he blinks his tears away. “You got that from a greeting card or somethin’?”

Al laughs, wiping his own tears away. “Nope, all original.”

“Ugh. Since when is my brother such a poetic little shit.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Al says cheekily, stepping back against the railing. “Another thing I’m better at than you.” He teases.

“Wow. Thanks a lot. Really feeling the support.” Ed snorts, bumping his shoulder against Al’s.

They stand in a comfortable silence after that, enjoying the view.

He’ll need time to process everything that Al had said to him. Everything he’d probably needed to hear.

He takes in a deep shaky breath and feels that his heart, though cracked and scarred, does feel a little lighter.

If Alfons was watching, Ed wanted to do right by him. No, he had to. For all of them.

***

Eventually, it gets too dark and sleep tugs at their minds, ushering them back into the house.

The dishes are all done and the kitchen is cleaned spotless.

Priyanka calls them both upstairs where she’s setting down spare bedrolls for them. With an apologetic smile she tells them that their house only had one guest bedroom, meaning only one extra bed and a couch. Two of their group would have to sleep on the provided sleeping mats.

Ed shrugs. He was totally fine with that. He’d slept in worse places, after all.

Ed thinks they’ll need time to decide on the sleeping arrangements but turns out while he and Al were outside Ling and Lan Fan have already decided. From the disgruntled expression on Lan Fan’s face Ed can tell she’d been semi-coerced and semi-forced by Ling to accept the bed. Ed wouldn’t be surprised if they’d spent all that time arguing over it.

For his part, Ed doesn’t have any trouble in convincing his brother to take the couch. He expects some resistance, because his brother is just as stubborn as himself, but Al only yawns and nods sleepily. Ed ruffles his hair and then Al is stumbling toward the couch and falling face-first on it, mumbling a goodnight. Lan Fan throws one last unhappy glance at her emperor before she’s following Priyanka out of the room.

“Goodnight, boys! We’ll see you in the morning.” Priyanka flashes one final smile and then gently closes the door behind them.

“G’night!”

“See you.”

When Ed looks over, Ling is already lying down. 

He stretches his arms over his head with a yawn and catches Ed watching. “Hm? Something on your mind?”

Ed glances once at his brother over his shoulder as he takes off his vest and settles down inside his own bedroll. Al looks fast asleep already, chest rising and falling steadily.

He keeps his voice low anyway, just in case. 

“I thought you didn’t wanna waste any time.”

Ling’s eyebrows knit in confusion and Ed rushes to clarify, shifting onto his side to face him. “Going after the stone I mean.”

Ling’s mouth makes a little ‘o’ shape and then he nods. “I don’t.”

“Then why are we still here exactly?”

Ling gives him a confused look, shifting around to face him as well. “What do you mean? It’s true that I want the stone as soon as possible but not at the cost of your health, Ed. I thought you might need to use some rest first, after all.”

Ed raises an eyebrow. “Why so concerned all of a sudden?”

“Why shouldn’t I show concern over my employee’s health? What kind of an emperor neglects his subjects?” Ling shakes his head, tutting. “A ruler is nothing without his people, you know.” 

Ed huffs a laugh, throwing his arm over his face. “Again with that? Fine, whatever. Look, I appreciate it, okay? Thanks.” The distance between their mattresses is small and Ed easily reaches over, playfully elbowing Ling in the side the way he'd done earlier with Al.

Ling snorts, saying nothing for a while.

Ed tucks his arms behind his head as he looks up at the ceiling. “So are you really planning to use the stone to make gold? What if it doesn’t work?” Ed tries for a casual tone.

“It will. It has to.” 

He doesn’t expect the sudden steeliness in Ling’s voice and he turns his head to see his face. He’d lost his previous relaxed expression and was frowning hard at the ceiling, eyes wide open in the darkness of the room.

“It’s that important to you?” Ed asks softly.

Ling blinks and turns his head toward Ed, his frown relaxing slightly. He nods. “It is,” he says just as quietly.

He searches Ed’s face for something, looking like he wants to say something more.

Ed desperately tries to make his expression as open and trusting as possible.

He feels a stab of disappointment when Ling breaks their gaze, sighing. He closes his eyes as if to go to sleep but Ed can tell he’s awake, his breaths too uneven for that.

Ed swallows his frustration as he watches Ling’s profile, suddenly thinking back to his earlier conversation with Al. About the promise he’d made to try and reach out more.

“Hey, you wanna know how I lost my arm and leg?”

Ling’s eyelids flutter open as he slowly turns toward him. He leans closer with interest, black strands of hair falling messily into his eyes. “How?”

Ed grins. “Shark attack.”

Ling blinks. “Excuse me?”

Ed nods, smiling. “Yep. I fell into an shark tank when I was a baby and it ate my limbs. No wait, just my leg. I forgot. I lost my arm a year later when I was attacked by a tiger.”

“...a tiger?”

“Yeah! I punched it in the snout and sent it flying but it managed to get its teeth around my arm at the last minute and ripped it off.”

“And this happened when you were...a baby?”

Ed nods solemnly. “A year old, to be exact. So you can’t ask Al about it, sadly. Since he wasn’t even born yet and all.”

Ling’s shoulders shake and he turns his head to muffle his laughter with his pillow.

Ed puts on an exaggerated frown. “Why the hell’re you laughing? It was a horrible tragedy, you heartless jerk!”

“Stop,” Ling wheezes, covering his face with his hands.

Ed’s facade breaks and he cackles too, trying to keep it quiet so he doesn’t wake Al.

Eventually, they both calm down.

Ling sighs. “You’re awful, Ed. You almost had me too.”

Ed snorts, laying back down. “Trust me, the real story is just as ridiculous. You wouldn’t believe it anyway, if I told you.”

He feels Ling’s curious gaze on him. “Oh, I wouldn’t be so quick to make that judgement. I’ve heard a lot of unbelievable tales that turned out to be true.”

Ed glances at him. Ling’s dark eyes are open, easy and non-judging. They hold his gaze until Ed sighs, smiling softly. He had promised Al, after all. 

“Fine, maybe someday. Promise to get me drunk beforehand, though.”

Ling’s expression softens and he reaches across the space between them to gently tug on Ed’s braid, earning him a confused look. “It’s a deal, then. Goodnight, Ed.”

He turns and pulls the comforter over him, facing away from him.

“G’night,” Ed says belatedly, blinking confusedly at his back.

Eventually, the pull of sleep becomes too much and it isn’t long before Ed succumbs to it. For once, he isn’t afraid of what awaits him in dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not much plot in this one but some well-earned bonding between the group....thanks for reading!!


End file.
